A Rose by Any Other Name
by KBear143
Summary: Straight-laced Dick Winters has his hands full with trying to bring his paratroopers home alive. He has an incredible work ethic, an impressive sense of duty, and a natural leadership ability that would rival anyone in the U.S. military. What he doesn't have, however, is Nix's notions that he is falling in love with one of his paratroopers... no matter how incredible she is.
1. Chapter 1

**THIS ONE IS FOR BUGALOUIE** , **AND SEVERAL OTHERS WHO ASKED ME ABOUT A WINTERS STORY. IT WAS GOING TO BE A ONE-SHOT, BUT OUR RED-HAIRED LEADER JUST WOULDN'T LET ME WRITE IT THAT WAY... SO HERE IS CHAPTER ONE.**

* * *

 **** ROSE POV ****

I was twenty when Major Richard "Dick" Winters announced that the war was over. Japan had surrendered and, instead of being shipped to some God-forsaken island in the Pacific, we were all finally going home. I watched his face. For the first time in over a year, he looked completely at peace.

I had been with Easy Company since Toccoa, and I had always had an immense respect for the red-haired officer, a Lieutenant at the time, standing before me. We were never especially close during training, as he was always careful to keep a certain professional distance between himself and the enlisted soldiers, but he was easy to like and to follow. When we jumped into Normandy, I landed almost on top of him, and we spent the next few hours alone together in the French countryside. It was there that our friendship was truly born.

"Rose? You okay?"

"Yes, sir. Sorry about that landing. My chute has some holes in it and one of my riser lines got snapped."

"You're down safe. That's what matters. Do you have a weapon?"

"Yes, sir. Lost my leg bag but I have my rifle."

"Okay, good. Mine is gone but I have some idea of where we are and we have a lot of walking ahead of us."

We were definitely in the wrong zone, and for the first hour or so, all of the distant voices we heard were speaking German. We moved silently, listening to the popping of gunfire and the roar of anti-aircraft artillery. Then, off to our left, I heard a crackle in the bushes. We stopped, sinking silently into the underbrush until we could identify the source.

Click. He gave the signal on his cricket and we waited, almost holding our breath. No response.

Instead, we heard the terror-inducing sound of someone moving toward our position, muttering to himself in German. From my limited knowledge of the language, I could tell that he had seen someone come down in this area and he was searching for us.

We held still, split up across the small path that the German was using, hoping that he would simply pass us by. He did not. Instead, he headed straight toward where Winters was hidden. I had my rifle, but I couldn't fire without bringing more attention to our position. I could see my lieutenant's eyes glinting in the moonlight as he prepared himself for what was about to happen, but as the German's arm came up aiming a Luger I realized that there would be no chance for him to counterattack. I had a choice to make.

The world that had been moving in slow motion now seemed to be racing by. I jumped from my hiding place, freeing my trench knife as I moved. The kill was quick and quiet, the wound to the German's throat coming before he could see me and, thankfully, before he could get off a shot. He fell, pulling me down as he went, and I rolled toward Winters.

"Rose! Are you okay?"

"Yes, sir."

He stood and carefully helped me up, checking me over for injuries. It was then that I realized I was shaking, as much from adrenalin as from fear. He put his hands on my shoulders and held me steady with his eyes.

"You did the right thing, Rose," he reassured me, adding with a small smile, "And you probably just saved my life."

I returned his smile and, with a small nod, we began our long walk to the assembly area, adding to our group along the way.

That night was the first night I ever heard him raise his voice when he shouted at Bill Guarnere for firing without his order. I had to internally scold myself for finding him so incredibly attractive in that moment. D-Day was no time for such thoughts, but that was the night we began to look a little differently at each other. Before we knew it, respect had grown into admiration.

I watched him flourish as our leader, proving his incredible tactical skill at Brecourt and leading us through the seizure of Carentan. He had been making a point of checking in on me since the jump, so when I first saw him in the aid station, I assumed that was what he was doing. I had been helping Roe as best I could when I looked up and met his piercing eyes. He took a tentative, hobbling step forward and I noticed blood on his leg.

"Lieutenant Winters! Here. We have an open table here."

I rushed to his side and put his arm over my shoulder so that I could bear some of the weight off of his wounded leg, helping him onto the table. His cheeks flushed at the attention as he tried to assure me that he was fine, but I had the leg of his trousers rolled up quickly, revealing a small shrapnel wound.

"What happened?"

"It was just a ricochet. I'm really okay," he insisted.

I glanced up at his face as I dabbed around the wound to clear away some of the blood.

"You can't afford for it to get infected, so I really need to get it out of there. I'll do my best not to hurt you."

People buzzed around us. The room was full of activity. Lieutenant Compton came by to check in and find out what the plan was, as it was clear that the Germans would probably plan a counter-attack. I tried to focus my entire attention on the wound in front of me. The noise and activity were easy to tune out, but Winters' eyes studying my face as I worked were harder to ignore. I took a deep breath and slipped one hand behind his calf to hold it steady, gently probing the wound with forceps in search of the piece of metal.

He hissed in pain, twitching his leg just as I got a grip on the shrapnel, but I held his calf firmly and removed it as quickly as I could without causing further damage. It had been a ricochet, unpleasant and painful, but not life-threatening as long as it didn't get infected. That, and the fact that it hadn't been deep enough to break the bone were very good news.

"Are you going to be able to stay off of this, sir?"

"Doesn't look that way," he winced as I began to clean it again.

I looked up at him apologetically and he gave me a small smile.

"Try to as much as you can. At the very least, please make sure you let me clean and redress it a couple of times a day. It's not a bad wound, but it could be if it got infected. You'd have a hell of a time making General on one leg, Lieutenant."

That drew a laugh. Then he noticed Albert Blithe sitting against the wall, staring blankly.

"What's wrong with Blithe?"

"Nothing. Except he says he can't see. Told Roe that things just went black all of a sudden."

Before I could finish dressing his wound, he stood and walked over, spending a few minutes talking to Blithe. As he made his way back toward me, to both of our astonishment, Blithe stood up and said that he was okay. It was strange to witness, but Roe would later call in "hysterical blindness." Apparently, our CO's reassurance was enough to calm him down and restore his sight. I smiled and motioned him back to the table.

"Okay, miracle worker. Now, sit down so that I can get this bandage on your leg before I have to clean it all over again. You're bleeding on my floor."

"Is that any way to talk to your CO?" he chuckled.

"My apologies. You're bleeding on my floor, SIR," I replied, snapping a salute.

"Alright, alright. Just wrap my leg up so that I can get back to work."

Months went by quickly after Carentan, but days seemed to take forever. My red-haired Lieutenant became my red-haired Captain, and then we learned that we were to jump into Holland under British command. This half-baked scheme was supposed to get tanks over the Rhine and into Germany, setting us up to be home by Christmas. It sounded too good to be true, and I could see the concern on Captain Winters' face as Nixon briefed us. It turned out much worse than we could have expected.

The daytime jump went smoothly enough. Nobody was shooting at us, which was nice, but our wide-open arrival and the lengthy march to our first target, a bridge over the Wilhelmina Canal, gave the Germans plenty of time to prepare. The bridge exploded in a hail of timbers and splinters just as we reached it, and I was thrown through the air with the force of the blast.

"Rose! Are you okay? Can you hear me?"

I shook off the momentary stun from my hard landing and looked up to see the concerned eyes of Richard Winters kneeling above me.

"Yes sir. I think I'm okay. Just a little stunned. Bumps and bruises. I'll be fine."

"Are you sure? Here, let me help you up."

He slid an arm underneath my neck and his other hand into mine, helping me first to sit, and then to stand. I wavered slightly at the blood rush from standing up, and he put his arms around me to steady me. Looking up into his eyes did little to help my balance, but I struggled to compose myself as we stood there for what must have been a suspiciously long time, because Nixon soon appeared beside us and cleared his throat.

"Everything okay over here, Dick?"

"Yeah. Yeah, Nix," he answered, responding as though he were coming out of a trance. "Rose just got thrown by the blast and was a little unsteady on her feet."

He released my waist slowly, as if he were waiting for me to fall, and looked over at Nixon's smirking face.

"Well, I'm glad you were here to assist her. Now, if you're finished feeling… I mean 'holding'… her up, we need to figure out how we are going to get across this bridge."

"Excuse us, Rose," a blushing Dick spoke through gritted teeth, pulling Nixon away by the arm.


	2. Chapter 2

**THANK YOU FOR YOUR REVIEWS! YOU ARE ALL AMAZING AND I APPRECIATE IT SO MUCH!**

 **There was some concern raised about Rose's age, and I wanted to address that quickly (although it will be further explained as the story continues). Rose is 20 years old in August of 1945. She would have been 17 in the summer of 1942, when training began, and 19 on D-Day. It was not unheard of for a 17 year old to join. Many who were younger than that lied about their ages to enlist, and a large number got their parents' permission. Guarnere and Heffron were both 19 when they began training. Skip Muck and Donald Hoobler were 20. Buck Compton was an officer on the D-Day jump at the age of 22.**

 **As far as Winters' age compared to Rose's, he would have been 24 when he met Rose and began training. It was not uncommon for younger women to marry older men, and you will discover that Rose is an older soul than her age would suggest. Winters' real life wife was four years younger. The seven year difference won't really prove to be that much in the end.**

 **Stay with me everyone. I'll try to make it worth it.**

* * *

 **** WINTERS POV ****

"So… you kinda like her," Nixon elbowed me in the ribs.

"What are you talking about, Lew?"

"Rose. You like her."

"What? No," I answered a little too defensively, and his grin grew bigger.

"Well, she is beautiful. So, I guess you wouldn't mind if I…" I shot him a glare and he laughed out loud. "Uh huh. That's what I thought."

I thought back to Toccoa, when I had first met Rosalie James.

* * *

 _I was walking back toward the officer's barracks. I rounded the corner and ran into a tiny creature carrying a large Army duffel bag. When she looked up and realized my rank, she dropped the bag to salute._

 _"Oh! Excuse me, sir! I'm so sorry!"_

 _"It's okay. Here, let me help you with that. Where are you headed?"_

 _"Um, Easy Company barracks, sir."_

 _"Excuse me for saying so miss, but you look awfully young to be here."_

 _"I'm 17, sir. Young, yes, but I've finished school. My guardian agreed to allow me to try to complete training as a paratrooper. If not, I get sent back to the hospital I was volunteering at… and I really don't want that."_

 _"Ah, you must be Rosalie James. Colonel Sink told me to expect you. I'm Lt. Richard Winters. Here we are. Easy Company barracks. And listen, I think you'll be fine. These are good men. But if anybody gives you any trouble, please let me know."_

 _I watched as she won over the other enlisted men during training, not only because she was beautiful… not that I noticed such things… but because she had a tremendous heart and work ethic. Sink had told the officers when he briefed us that she'd been through a lot in her short life. I wasn't sure what that meant, but whatever it was must have galvanized her for everything that lay ahead. No matter what Sobel put us through, I don't think I ever heard her complain. She just kept pushing everyone to keep going._

 _She'd be running up Currahee, pacing the slower guys and starting cadences to get them moving. I tried not to pay attention to the way that the white T-shirt clung to her curves or how her tanned legs looked in the shorts, although Nixon pointed it out to me incessantly. I actually started to prefer running the hill in full pack, because running in PT gear had become… distracting._

 _Once Lew called my attention to that, I began noticing other things about her that I had to actively try not to. I pretended that I didn't see the way she smiled and blushed when I complimented her on something she did well. Or her laugh. Or how much she cared about the guys around her. Or the way it seemed to infuriate her when Sobel came down on me for something stupid… Okay, so maybe I noticed. Not that Nix ever let me forget it._

 _By the time I cushioned her landing in Normandy, she was a couple of months shy of her 19_ _th_ _birthday. She had grown from this shy, slight girl into a well-trained soldier and, as much as I hated to admit it, quite a woman. I was more relieved that I wanted to admit when she landed safely with me, especially when I realized that we had been dropped in the wrong zone, and impressed with the way she handled herself as we worked our way toward the assembly area. Other than the tension with Guarnere, we were actually making out alright so far._

 _"Bill, look. I understand you're upset about your brother. But he really just wanted you to wait for his command. He doesn't have a weapon. It's not like he could shoot anything."_

 _"Rose, he don't even drink!"_

 _"I know, sweetheart. But he does know what he's doing. Just take your frustrations out on the Germans, okay? We don't need to be fighting each other out here."_

 _"Yeah, Doll. I hear ya."_

 _She saw that I was listening and fell back a bit until she was in step beside me._

 _"Thank you for that," I nodded toward Bill._

 _"Oh. I didn't do that for you, sir. Not that what I said wasn't true, but I did it for Bill. He found out just before we jumped that his brother was killed in Italy. You know how good a soldier Bill is, sir. He's just not in a good place right now."_

 _"Still," I answered, impressed with her insight, "thank you."_

 _Bill actually did seem calmer after she spoke to him, and that night he and I made our own peace. I also realized that although some of the others seemed eager to show off souvenirs and talk about kills, Rose had not, to my knowledge, told anyone of killing the German or saving my life, though she could have easily bragged about it._

 _I was walking back toward the Company HQ, trying to open a K-ration and thinking about my growing admiration of her, and going over the death of the man who'd been killed in the assault at Brecourt Manor earlier in the day, when she appeared beside me again._

 _"You okay, sir?"_

 _"What? Oh, yes. I'm fine. Just thinking… I knew we wouldn't come back with everybody, and that there was a chance I'd be leading the Company at some point. I just…"_

 _"You were masterful today. This is war, sir. You're gonna lose people. It doesn't make you any less of a great leader. Here, let me get that for you sir."_

 _"Don't worry about it. I'm not really that hungry. But thank you for what you said, Rose… I needed to hear that."_

 _"You're welcome, sir," she smiled, turning to walk back toward the truck where Guarnere and the others had been._

 _"And, Rose?" I touched her arm so that she looked back up at me. "When we're alone, you don't have to call me sir. You can just call me Dick."_

 _She flashed me the most beautiful smile, and said, simply, "Okay, sir."_

* * *

"Hey, loverboy! Snap out of it! We've got a blown up bridge to deal with here."

I looked over, catching the amused looks on Nixon and Welsh, and realized that I'd been watching her again.

"Seriously," Welsh asked, "what is it with you and her?"

I took a deep breath and let it out. Neither of us had ever told anyone about what had happened with the German. They looked at me curiously, waiting for an answer.

"She saved my life on D-Day."

Their eyes registered surprise, and Lew sputtered, "Wait, what? What happened? Why am I just now hearing about this?"

I recounted the story of the jump, our landing, and our encounter with the German soldier. I told them about the Luger, Rose's quick thinking, and the fatal blow with the trench knife.

"He was about to fire, but from my angle, I didn't know he had seen me and I couldn't see the gun. We were surrounded. She couldn't shoot him because of the noise. She jumped him from the side and took him out with her knife before he could get off a shot. She saved my life."

"Wow," he breathed, unsure of what to say. "You put her in for a medal?"

"She told me that she didn't want any recognition. Said she just did as I would have. She deserves something though. She could have panicked and fired, giving away our position. Or she could have frozen and let him fire. She took him down with a trench knife, Nix. He was twice, maybe three times her size. If he had overpowered her, she'd have been dead before I could have done anything. But she never even hesitated. She risked her life to save mine."

"Well, just when I thought you were immune to women, she comes along. No wonder you're falling for her."

"What? No I'm not! I just respect her. A lot. She's quite a woman… soldier… Shut up, Lew."

Welsh nudged Nix, muttering, "Bet he can't make it through the war without at least kissing her."

"No way am I taking that bet."

I wasn't sure that I would either, and the thought startled me a bit.


	3. Chapter 3

**** ROSE POV ****

I waded through the jubilant streets of Eindhoven, laughing as the men accepted food and kisses from the excited residents. Captain Winters was gracious, but clearly embarrassed by all of the attention and concerned about the possibility of snipers. He and Captain Nixon were trying to get everyone moving, but with the streets full of people, it was easier said than done. I was certainly having trouble swimming against the tide.

I could see our company gathering ahead of me, talking with several of the officers as they determined what to do next and I was trying desperately, and unsuccessfully, to push through a group of men moving in the opposite direction. Suddenly, a hand slid into mine, pulling me confidently through the crowd. My red-haired Captain. Electricity flowed between us, and I knew he could feel it too because he swallowed hard, looking down at our intertwined fingers and back up at me. I expected him to let go, but his eyes met mine and he gave me a reassuring smile.

Even when we reached the meeting point, he kept me close, slipping his hand to the small of my back as he spoke to the other officers about setting guards and checking bridges. When he finished the impromptu briefing, Lt. Compton indicated that they had arranged a place for the officers to stay for the night. Captain Winters moved to follow, and then stopped and turned to me. I didn't miss the grin on Nixon's face as his friend spoke.

"Rose, you can come with us. Some of the men here are drunk and angry, as you saw from the public shaming earlier. I'm not sure I feel comfortable with the way they were looking at you either."

"I'll stay close to some of the men, sir. I won't go off alone."

"If the men think you might be in danger, some of them will stay up all night to keep an eye on you. I'd much rather that everyone be well-rested, especially since we don't know what we may be facing. You'll be safe with us. We'll find a place for you in the officer's quarters."

Captain Nixon threw his arm around me and agreed, "Yeah, Rose. We'll find a place for you. I can make sure that you are more than comfortable."

"Excuse him. He left his manners and discretion at Yale," Welsh joked.

"Yes, sir. Thank you."

I did sleep comfortably that night, safely tucked into a cot that Captain Winters had foregone so that I could have it. Despite all protests to the contrary, he made a palette on the floor.

"Dick, you can have one of our beds," Welsh insisted, and Nixon and Compton nodded. "Or Rose can."

"No. Absolutely not. I'll be fine. I told her to join us, so I'm responsible for finding her a spot."

As he spread a blanket on the floor, I sat on the edge of the cot, looking down at him.

"Sir, I really don't mind sleeping on the floor. If it weren't for your kindness, I'd probably be sleeping on the ground anyway."

"And if it weren't for you, I wouldn't be sleeping anywhere." He stretched out on his makeshift bed and glanced up at me with a gentle smile, joking, "Rose, you've spent the last two years gracefully enduring the most unladylike of atmospheres and, I'd venture to say, you still have a while to go yet. Accepting a small show of chivalry now and then won't kill you. Besides, my parents would not be pleased with me if I allowed you to sleep on the floor… and it makes me feel better. I could never sleep if I knew you were down here."

* * *

 **** DICK POV ****

It was still dark outside when I woke up with an unsettled feeling in my gut. We were pushing forward into Nuenen today, and after the jubilation of yesterday, it was hard to think we would run into much trouble. Something just didn't feel right. I sat up and looked over at the cot next to me.

She was facing me, still sleeping, with one arm curled around a rolled up blanket, holding it as a child would hold a teddy bear. Without thinking, I reached up and brushed a strand of hair back from her face, running my thumb across her flushed cheek. She unconsciously moved into my touch and I suddenly understood that my respect, which had grown into admiration over the last few months, had somehow bloomed into affection.

The realization brought me up short. I couldn't afford such thoughts, especially about one of my troopers. I certainly couldn't act upon them, even as Welsh's words about kissing her ran through my mind causing me to look down at her lips. I drew back my fingers and her eyes fluttered open.

"Are you okay, sir? You look as though you're worried about something."

That was the other thing. Sometimes I wondered if she could actually see into my brain. She seemed to read my eyes even when my face remained passive, and she always knew exactly the question to ask or the words to say. She picked up on my expressions as well as Nix. Sometimes better.

"How do you do that?"

"What?"

"How do you always know?"

She laughed quietly and propped herself up on her elbow.

"I don't know really. Sixth sense about you, I guess. So, what is it? You have a bad feeling about today, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do. I just don't know why."

"Because this is a war. Because taking Eindhoven was too easy. Because you're our leader, and it's your job to worry about what comes next. You don't trust this plan any more than I do, because it sounds too good to be true. We all know how that usually turns out."

"You're amazing. Do you know that?"

I couldn't tell for sure in the dim light, but it looked like she blushed.

"Not really. We just think a lot alike. Look, sir. I know that you have a bad feeling about this. So do I. We're going to lose some people. It's not going to be as simple as they made it out to be, and more people are going to get wounded. Maybe killed. But Easy will keep going just like it always has, because you'll lead us through like you always do."

"You sound so sure about me."

"I am," she answered confidently, and then she smiled at me.

If we were anywhere but here, it would be so easy to fall in love with that smile. I wished later that I could have stayed there in those pre-dawn hours with her. Instead, I found myself taking cover behind a truck as it seemed that half the German military were in Nuenen and shooting back at us. I had at least one Lieutenant and a medic badly wounded at the start of the surprise attack, and no idea how many we had lost as I urged everyone to get back on the trucks so that we could pull back. I'd seen a tank explode and people being thrown, but I had no idea who they were. A bullet pinged off of Nix's helmet as he stood next to me, and he fell to the ground.

"I'm alright! I'm alright! Am I alright?"

"Yeah, yeah, you're okay. You feel okay?"

"Yeah! Stop looking at me like that!"

We crawled over the wheel of the truck, and I thought back to my premonition that morning, wishing that I had been wrong. Lipton crouched beside me to give me a rundown of the losses, and I gave him a nod as we started to move.

"Oh, and sir? Randleman and James are missing."

My mouth went dry and the world spun for a moment, but I nodded and we climbed into the trucks. As we pulled away, I stared out the back of the truck in stunned silence, hoping to see my two lost troopers… hoping to see Rose running behind a truck, yelling for us to pick her up. They didn't come. Nix patted me on the shoulder.

"Dick, they'll be okay. We'll find them. They're both strong. Just focus on what you can do, okay?"

He was right. As much as it wrenched my stomach, I had an entire company to think about. Losing Randleman and Rose in addition to a retreat would be a severe blow to morale. We needed a safe place to spend the night, and I needed to get Easy regrouped and ready for whatever lay ahead. Still, I couldn't shake the image of her smile and her words from that morning.

 _"But Easy will keep going just like it always has, because you'll lead us through like you always do."_

She believed in me. I couldn't let her down. I just had to hope she was as strong as I thought she was.


	4. Chapter 4

**** ROSE POV ****

When I got to Bull, he was awake and, except for the ragged wound on his shoulder, seemed to be okay. I'd seen the tank explode and throw his massive body through the air, so there was a good chance that he had a chunk of metal embedded underneath that blood-soaked uniform. I didn't really have time to check though, because the Germans were still crawling all around us. We made our way into a drainage flume, sheltering there until nightfall as the realization that Easy had retreated without us sunk in.

In the darkness, we crept into a barn and I was finally able to take a good look at the oozing hole on Bull's broad shoulder. His face was twisted in pain, and he was having trouble moving his arm. It was only a matter of time before it got infected, and Easy Company just could not afford to lose Denver Randleman. He gave me a nod, and I ripped a wider hole in his shirt, cleaning the wound with water from my canteen.

"Bull, there's no way I can get this out with my fingers without making it worse. It's too deep."

He pulled his knife from the holster and handed it over his shoulder. I looked at him uncertainly.

"I trust you."

Slowly, carefully, I dug the tip of the blade under the piece of twisted metal. He was trying not to show how badly it hurt, but it must have been excruciating for him. Finally, I got a grip and pulled the shard free. He gave an audible sigh of relief, his whole body relaxing as I cleaned the wound again and ripped away part of my shirt to staunch the bleeding and keep out the dirt.

The sound of German voices and a truck stopping outside had us both on our feet, hiding in the shadows. The barn door creaked open, and Bull held a finger to his lips and motioned for me to get down and wait for them to leave. At last, only one man was left and he was heading toward the door. We were almost home free. Then he saw a piece of my bloody shirt on the ground where Bull had been and called out. My heart leapt to my throat and I shifted, accidentally kicking a metal milk bucket.

The German whirled at the sound and I moved to defend myself, but Bull was in front of me before I could move. With the roar of a plane overhead drowning out the sounds of the fight, he bested the young soldier in a brutal bayonet to bayonet battle, finally killing him and hiding his body beneath a pile of straw. He sank back down against the wall beside me, heart still pounding, but relieved nonetheless.

"I'm so sorry, Bull. He picked up that shirt and called out, and I…"

"Sweetheart, it's okay. He'd have searched for us anyway after finding that fresh blood. Nothing we could do. Besides, I didn't do anything that you yourself haven't done already."

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about you saving Winters by jumping a German on D-Day with only your trench knife."

His smile held admiration and respect, and I blushed. "How do you even know about that?"

"Heard Winters telling Welsh and Nixon about it after the bridge blew up the other day. They were giving him hell for watching you so much. Welsh asked him what the deal was with you two, and he said that you had saved his life. Caught my interest, so I listened to him tell the story. I can't believe you never said anything."

"Come on, Bull. I did what anyone would have done. You'd have done it. You just did. And I'd do it for any one of you. Now, let me see that shoulder so that I can put a fresh bandage over it."

He studied me for a long minute, curiosity peeking out behind his eyes, and finally asked, "What makes a beautiful, smart 17-year-old girl sign up to be a paratrooper, and actually be tough enough to make it through the training we went through? Much less this war? Everyone in the company has been trying to figure out your story for two years, Rose. How did you get here?"

I trusted him. I just hadn't really talked much about my history with any of the guys. The officers knew, but that was about it. Seeing that he wasn't going to let me take care of his shoulder until I answered him, I sighed and sat back on my heels a bit.

"It's not much of a story. My father went to West Point with my 'Uncle Bob.' They were best friends. Basically wound up in a lot of the same places through the next ten years. When I was 12, we were stationed in Arizona and my parents were killed in a car accident. Uncle Bob was the closest thing I had to family, and he became my guardian. I finished school at sixteen and started volunteering in the hospitals and aid stations wherever we were stationed, with the idea of going to medical school someday. Got attacked one night in a storage room by a private that could never seem to take the hint that I wasn't interested. He decided to take what he wanted instead. Uncle Bob saw to it that he was handled, although he would never tell me how, and stayed with me every step of the way. When I was in the hospital recovering, he asked me what I wanted for my 17th birthday, and I told him I wanted to be a paratrooper. I knew that it would help me in the future when I was working in emergency medicine, and that the paratroopers were the best. I never, ever wanted to feel like a victim ever again. He told me that he was going to put me with the toughest CO, in the toughest company, and if I could make it through training, he would support me every step of the way. And he has. Although, if I know my Uncle Bob, he's probably giving people fits because they can't find me."

"How would he know already? And how did he get you with Easy? You said he went to West Point?"

"Yeah. Sorry, maybe I should have clarified. Uncle Bob to me is Colonel Robert Sink to the rest of you. Now, stop staring at me like I have three heads and turn around so that I can fix your shoulder."

He chuckled, "Yes ma'am. No wonder Winters has a thing for you. You're all business. You two are so much alike that it is scary."

We took turns resting and keeping watch until the sun finally came up. When we peeked out of the barn, it looked as though the Germans had moved on so we started working our way back in the direction that Easy had gone. Bull paused over the body of Private Miller, a replacement who had just been put in his squad. I placed a hand on his shoulder as he knelt to collect the young man's dog tag. Another life ended far too soon.

A jeep rumbled toward us, and I recognized it as one of ours. Bull raised his rifle with his good arm, signaling that we were American, and the jeep slid to a stop beside us. A wave of relief washed over me. I climbed in behind Bull and the jeep charged back down the road. After a few minutes, I saw another rifle raise and recognized Hoobler and the rest of Bull's squad. They'd come looking for us. We hadn't been left behind after all.

"Where the fuck you two been?" Hoobler grinned as he approached the jeep.

Even Cobb looked happy to see us, climbing into the back beside me and throwing an arm around my shoulder.

"You know, if y'all wanted some alone time, all you had to do was say so," he joked, and I elbowed him playfully in the ribs. "Seriously though, damn glad to see you safe. Winters will be too. He was pacing like a caged animal when we took off."

I tried not to let it show on my face, but my heart did a little dance. I knew he cared about all of his soldiers, but Roy seemed to be suggesting something else. That, coupled with Bull's revelation the night before, was more than I could have hoped for. I knew better than to get worked up when there was no possibility that anything could happen, but still, it made me feel good. I was also just happy to hear that he was okay. I hadn't seen him since the firing started.

A crowd of familiar faces gathered around us as the jeep pulled up. I heard John Martin call out, and then he and Bill were beside us and Roy lifted me out of the back of the jeep. I looked around and, atop the rise where our remaining tanks were parked, saw the back of Winters' red head and Nixon looking directly at me. He smiled and spoke to Dick, pointing down at me.

I could see the relief on his face when he met my eyes. Nix just patted him on the arm, lighting his cigarette and leaning back against the tank. There was no rest for the weary though, and a moment later, we were ordered to load up again. For the first time since the war began, Easy Company was retreating. Market Garden was a disaster. I could see the disgust on my Captain's face as I walked toward the convoy.

Exhausted and struggling to pull myself up, I felt a hand on my back, helping me onto the back of the truck. I turned my head and found myself looking into a pair of piercing eyes.

"It's good to see you, Rose."

"Thank you, sir. You too."

My breath hitched as he leaned in close to me, his voice barely above a whisper, "You stay close from now on, okay? I don't ever need another night like last night. That was as close as I ever want to come to Hell."

"Yes sir," I answered quietly, and we held each other's gaze for what seemed like forever.

Finally, Captain Nixon cleared his throat beside us, not even attempting to hide his knowing smile. I was pulled into the back of the truck and we were moving again, but I spent the rest of the slow ride watching him walk behind me and wondering exactly what he had meant.

* * *

 **** WINTERS POV ****

"Hey, Dick. Look at this." I saw a smile on Lew's face as he pointed at something behind me, so I turned and searched the field below. He directed, "Right there, by the jeep."

I saw Martin and Guarnere. I saw Cobb and Hoobler. Then I saw Randleman, wounded but alive and, in an overwhelming wave of relief, a small frame tucked under his arm. Rose.

"Oh, thank God," I uttered, not realizing that I had spoken out loud until Nixon chuckled beside me.

"Looks like your girl is every bit the soldier you said she was. Guess maybe you'll actually sleep tonight. Why don't you just walk down there and plant one on her?"

I cut my eyes at him, but he just laughed harder and leaned against the tank to light his cigarette. When I looked back into the field, she met my eyes and smiled, acknowledging me with a small nod. She was safe. As I ordered the retreat, the pit in my gut was a bit shallower.

I still wanted to see for myself that she was okay, but I figured that rushing over to her as the men loaded up would be a bit obvious. When I saw her struggling to pull her exhausted body onto the back of one of the trucks, I saw my chance and went to help.

"Here, let me help you up." She looked to be uninjured, and she turned to meet my eyes. "It's good to see you, Rose."

"Thank you, sir. You too."

The night before, I had the unenviable task of telling Colonel Sink that his adopted daughter was missing in action, and the pain in his eyes as he allowed the news to settle over him spoke to the years' worth of guilt that he'd been harboring over her circumstances. Shortly after she had arrived at Toccoa, he'd briefed all of the officers about unbecoming behavior toward females and made sure we knew who she was to him and what she had been through. He knew that she didn't really want the men to know, but he didn't want any of the officers to be taken by surprise. In that briefing, I began to understand why her eyes held so much more life experience than her 17 years would have suggested.

After a moment of reflection, Sink had patted me on the shoulder. "It's not your fault, Dick. She's a spitfire. And she's out there somewhere. She'll turn up."

I thought about how I had spent the last eighteen hours, pacing and sleepless, wondering where she was. Wondering if I should mount a rescue operation… or a recovery effort. The second thought made me sick, and I didn't allow myself to think it again. I pretended not to notice when Hoobler took a small squad to go searching without asking my permission, but as it grew daylight and they had not returned, I began to worry that I'd lost even more men. Wherever she and Randleman were, I hoped that they were together. I didn't like the thought of her hiding somewhere alone, and I couldn't rid myself of the worry that she would think that we had abandoned her. That I had abandoned her.

As I looked into her eyes now though, it was not betrayal that I saw. It was relief. Her eyes held everything I felt. She was as happy to see me as I was to see her, and not just because she was back with Easy. Something told me that this look was just for me. I found myself leaning in and speaking in a quiet voice that was not quite my own.

"You stay close from now on, okay? I don't ever need another night like last night. That was as close as I ever want to come to Hell."

Her eyes registered surprise and her breathing grew shallow. She was chewing on her bottom lip, and my gaze flicked between her eyes and her mouth. I knew Nix was standing nearby, watching us with a smug smile on his face, but I could not make myself look away. She was standing so close, with uncertain eyes and her lip between her teeth, and all I could think about was kissing her.

"Ahem, Dick?" Nixon cleared his throat to hide his chuckle. "Hate to interrupt, but we need to get moving."

"Yeah," I answered, watching as Cobb pulled her the rest of the way into the truck. "Yeah, I hear you."

We walked along behind the slow-moving trucks in silence for a while. I could tell that Lew was dying to say something, but I didn't ask. I hated retreating as it was, and now, with my feelings for her taking up a growing space in my head, I had plenty on my mind already. Besides, I knew he'd come out with it eventually, whether I asked or not.

Right on cue, he asked, "So, are you ready to admit it yet?"

"Admit what?"

He couldn't hide his amusement at my feigned ignorance.

"Oh, please! You know exactly what. You were damn near intolerable last night, wringing your hands over that woman. And if you could have dipped her back and kissed her just now, in front of God and everybody, you would have. A couple more seconds of gazing into each other's eyes before I interrupted and you probably would have done it anyway!"

"Well then, I guess it's a good thing you interrupted, isn't it?"

"Is it?" he asked, and I realized he was smiling at me again. He had me pegged and he knew it. No use denying it anymore, at least to him. "Is that a confession?"

I shrugged, glancing at him out of the corner of my eye, and sighed, "What if it is?"

His smile widened.

"I won't tell a soul."

* * *

 **** ROSE POV ****

"So, I happened to come across this pass. Apparently, someone up the chain thinks that you need a little R&R in Paris," Nixon informed me, waving a piece of paper in front of my face.

"I didn't request a pass, sir."

The mischief flickered in his eyes and he flashed me a dazzling, oh-so-sure-of-himself smile.

"I know. I requested it on your behalf. In a few months, we'll be back in the middle of the bullshit again. With all of the replacements, we will be drilling nonstop until then. You need the break, especially after everything you went through in Holland. Listen, sweetheart, this isn't a request. It's an order. The driver will drop you off at your hotel. I've already made the arrangements. Have a nice trip."

He took my hand and wrapped it around the pass, forcing me to take it from him, and winked at me. As he walked away, he still had that giant grin plastered on his face. He was definitely up to something, but it seemed as though I didn't have much of a choice. I went to pack my bag before the jeep arrived.

* * *

 **** WINTERS POV ****

I was relieved to see Bill Guarnere back and in good spirits, and happy to hear that Moose Heyliger was getting better, but as soon as Bill walked out Nix started waving a piece of paper around.

"What is that? Another piece of paper? I don't want to see another piece of paper!"

"It has been decided that you need a little rest and recuperation."

My smug, smiling friend began laying out the details of my forced rest in Paris. Deep down, I knew he was probably right about the rest. Market Garden had been a disaster. What was supposed to have been "old men and kids" turned out to be a lot of Allied deaths. I had been promoted to Battalion XO, but before Heyliger could even settle into his new role as Easy Company's CO, one of our own sentries shot him by mistake. The replacement CO who had come in, Norman Dike, wasn't doing much to win the respect of the enlisted men. Now, the battalion was made up largely of replacements and we had another jump to train for. The more I thought about it, the more I was ready to protest. I simply had too much to worry about right now.

"I can't…"

"It's not an option. Came from Sink. You need a break."

"But I…"

"You're going to Paris. Hotel is already waiting for you. Your jeep is outside. Already has your bag in it. Buh-bye."

Part of me really wanted to wipe that smug smirk off of his face. The other part of me was relieved that the decision had been made for me. If one of my men had been in my position, I would have done the same thing. I grudgingly took the pass from Nixon's hand, and warned him not to catch anything while he was visiting "a certain young lady" in Aldbourne. Lord knows that was the last thing I wanted to deal with. It didn't occur to me to question what he had been smiling about until I got to the hotel to check in. After all, Lewis Nixon was usually smiling smugly at me about something.

"Yes, I'm checking in under Sgt. Rosalie James. Thank you."

I'd been looking down to see what Lew had packed for me when I heard her voice. She was standing in front of me at the check-in desk. I could just see the curve of her face as she spoke, and I knew that, somewhere in Aldbourne, Lewis Nixon had known exactly who I'd be running into in Paris.

"Rose? I didn't realize you'd gotten a pass."

"Oh! Sir, I didn't realize you'd be here. Captain Nixon insisted I take a pass to Paris. Said I needed the break after everything that happened in Holland."

Yes, he definitely did this on purpose, especially since it sounded as though our pre-selected rooms were very near each other.

"Here, let me help you with that bag. He was right, you know. You really do need a break. I was actually going to suggest you take one when Nix kicked me out of Mourmelon."

She did at least have the good grace to laugh at my bad joke as we found our rooms, which turned out to be adjoined, with a Jack-and-Jill style bathroom (separate toilets, but shared bath and lavatory facilities) between us.

Nixon – 3, Winters – 0.

"Okay, Lew. I give up," my inner voice conceded. "At least for now. We're alone in Paris. Why not enjoy it, at least a little?"

"Rose, there was a small café just outside the hotel. After you get settled in, if you don't have other plans, would you like to join me for an early dinner?"

She seemed a bit surprised at my invitation, and I thought I saw the faintest tinge of pink across her cheeks. I was keenly aware of the butterflies in my stomach as I waited for her answer.

"That sounds nice, sir," she answered, taking her bag and unlocking the door.

"Dick. We're off duty in Paris, Rose. For the next few days at least, my name is Dick. I'll come over in half an hour. Is that okay?"

She smiled over her shoulder at me, shyly taking her lower lip between her teeth just as she had when we stood beside the truck outside Nuenen.

"Alright, I'll see you in half an hour… Dick."


	5. Chapter 5

**THANK YOU TO MY AMAZING REVIEWERS! KEEP THEM COMING! ENJOY THIS CHAPTER.**

* * *

 **** DICK POV ****

The somewhat awkward dinner I had been anticipating turned out to be surprisingly relaxed and pleasant. We sat in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower, enjoying a light meal and talking about everything in the world and nothing at all.

I found myself studying her. She talked with animated pride about the guys of Easy, and rested her chin in her hands, listening intently whenever I spoke. When I asked her a question, she would look up at me through her eyelashes, gauging my reactions to her answers. We both found occasion to smile and laugh, and to blush as the conversation drifted from one subject to another.

"Nixon and Sink made you come to Paris didn't they?" she asked, smiling because she already knew the answer. "A new CO and a battalion full of replacements? There is no way that you would have requested leave on your own."

"You're right about that. It's hard for me to relax when I think of everything Easy has already been through, and now that I'm handling the battalion, there is just that much more to worry about before we go back to the line."

"You needed the break, Dick. Just a few days to clear your head while we are on R&R. And you'd never have done that in your office. Market Garden took it out of everyone. I know it will be difficult, but you need to find a way to get your mind off of the line for a couple of days. That battle with the SS at the crossroads is still haunting your eyes."

She reached out to touch the back of my hand across the table, and I turned it over and watched her fingers trail across my palm. Her eyes never left my face, quietly waiting for me to decide if I wanted to respond. Her genuine concern pushed past my carefully maintained façade of calm and confidence.

"Sometimes I wonder if you can read my mind, Rose. Of everything that has happened, that day is the one that keeps playing in my head. He was just a kid, but he was SS, and I shot him. I knew that I had to, but I still can't get his face out of my mind. It's like slow motion. Just a kid. Probably not old enough to shave. He could have been any of our guys out there."

"You would think that the knowledge that you did what you had to do would make things easier, but it doesn't, does it?" she answered quietly.

We made our way back to the hotel as darkness fell, both trying to steer the conversation back to brighter topics, and I tried to ignore the little jolt of electricity I felt each time her hand accidentally brushed against mine as we walked. By the time we made it back to our rooms, I could hear Nixon and Welsh laughing in my head, and I collapsed into my bed with the path her finger had traced still burned into my palm.

* * *

 **** (still) DICK POV ****

Early the following morning, I woke up and blinked into the sunlight streaming through my window. The world was still silent. I stood and stretched, enjoying the feeling of normalcy that came with not having to worry about someone shooting at you as you were still trying to drive the sleep from your eyes. The floor was cool against my feet as I padded to the bathroom to continue my morning routine.

I walked into the shared space to wash my face and brush my teeth, still turning over the previous night's conversation in my head. I didn't notice her until I looked up in the mirror, drawing a sharp breath at the sight. She lay in the tub, one bare knee just peeking out to remind me that she was naked beneath the bubbles that covered her. She looked a bit startled at first, but smiled as I started to stumble through a red-faced apology.

"Rose, I am so sorry! I didn't see you. I didn't even know you were up yet and…"

"Dick, it's okay. It's not like you can see anything."

"I know. I just… I know you're protective of your privacy… and about your…"

She seemed to pick up on where I was heading and looked down at the water, interrupting quietly, "About my past?"

"Well, yes."

She met my eyes again, and it felt like her pain reached out and slapped me across the face. I started to apologize for even bringing it up, but she cut me off again.

"You're the last person that I'd ever feel threatened by. I trust you, Dick. Completely."

I wasn't sure how to respond, so the silence hung there until the ticking of the clock on the wall became a pounding in my head and I finally shook myself out of my daze.

"Um, well I'll let you finish up in here," I said quickly, walking toward the door. I noticed her face reddened, the briefest look of rejection in her eyes, but she nodded and reached for a towel. The pang I felt in my own chest at her crestfallen look was unmistakable and I couldn't bear to be the cause of it. My mind raced through the things I could do to make her smile, passing some scenic routes that Lewis Nixon himself would have been proud of in an effort to find something that wouldn't end in courts-martial. My hand on the doorknob, I glanced back over my shoulder at her as she pulled the towel around her and stood, causing my voice to come out a little more strained than I had intended. "Why don't I knock on your door in half an hour? We can stop for some breakfast and maybe enjoy some sight-seeing? I mean, we are supposed to be relaxing in Paris, right?"

Her eyes met mine again, her bottom lip pulled uncertainly between her teeth before finally relaxing into a smile.

"Right," she answered, stepping out of the tub so that I had to consciously remind myself not to look at her legs. "And you don't have to leave. I'll go get dressed in my room so that you can have the bathroom. You know it will drive you crazy if you don't shave."

I leaned against the counter and released a breath as her door clicked shut behind her. On the other side, I could hear her humming some popular song as she went about doing whatever it is women do that takes them so much time to get ready.

Half an hour. I'd given myself half an hour to breathe and restore my façade of passive calm. I could manage that, as long as I could get the Nixon-devil on my shoulder to stop whispering things in my ear. Just the hint of bare skin as her knee peeked out of the tub… The sight of her wrapped in that plush white bath towel… The way she said my name when she told me that she trusted me…

I ran my hands over my face, willing myself to return to the present, and chuckled. She had been right about me again, I discovered. Turning back toward the mirror, I reached for my razor because I definitely needed to shave.


	6. Chapter 6

**** ROSE POV ****

It wasn't that I was immodest around Dick, but I could tell how incredibly mortified he already was. There seemed little need to make him feel worse by acting shocked or embarrassed. After all, he really couldn't see anything, even if the situation was suggestive. Lewis Nixon would certainly have enjoyed it.

Still, my heart pounded as he pretended that his eyes weren't wandering and I pretended not to notice. I left him in the bathroom to shave, closing my bedroom door behind me and leaning against it for a moment to regain my composure. I could still see the way he'd been looking at me, and it made my stomach flutter.

It occurred to me that I really needed to get this crush under control. After all, nothing could happen. No matter how kind he was to me, Dick was still my superior officer. Although I didn't feel the age difference between us was all that great, I was sure that, to him, I must seem as some baby sister that he'd been given charge over. Still, there had been something in his gaze a moment ago that seemed to contradict the notion, and I just couldn't bring myself to put it out of my mind altogether. The sound of running water in the bathroom brought me back to the present, even as I pictured him staring intently into the mirror as he drew the blade over his jaw. The words to some silly love song came floating into my head, and I began to hum along as I moved to get dressed.

A half hour later, prompt as always, Dick was waiting for me. I thought at first that he might feel awkward. Instead, he smiled and held out his arm for me to take.

"Where to first? Breakfast at the Eiffel Tower?" he asked, and that is how we found ourselves, some twenty minutes later, seated at a sidewalk cafe underneath the landmark as all of Paris began to wake up and come to life around us.

We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast filled with conversation and people-watching. For the first time in a long while, Dick's eyes didn't cloud over every time a young man passed us, as though he were still seeing the German soldier's face. He did, however, blush when I pointed out a group of giggling Parisian girls openly ogling him. We stood to begin our exploration and it looked for a moment that the group of admirers might approach us. They quickly changed course though when, to all of our surprise, he reached out and took my hand as we made our way toward one of the many museums.

"They're gone now," I teased. "Not that I mind being your bodyguard. I think you could've taken them though. They weren't very big."

"Very funny. Actually, I was saving you the trouble of having to be jealous when beautiful French women tried to steal me away," he dead-panned, not removing his hand from mine.

I looked up at him, mouth dropped open in mock-protest, until he finally looked down at me and smirked.

"Captain Nixon is starting to rub off on you."

"And that's a bad thing?"

"No, not necessarily. He does have his good qualities," I countered, shrugging. "And he is pretty attractive."

His head snapped down, eyes narrowing, studying my face to see if I was being serious or not. I let him wonder for a second before leaning into his side and laughing. His body visibly relaxed and he tugged at my hand.

"Cute. I'm sure he will be thrilled to hear you think so."

"Oh, I'm sure he will."

* * *

 **** DICK POV ****

I didn't really mean to show my jealousy when she mentioned Nix being attractive, just like I hadn't really intended to take her hand as we left the café. She had assumed that it was because of the women. I didn't contradict her although I knew that hadn't been the only reason. The truth was that I took her hand without any thought or reasoning whatsoever. It had simply felt like the natural thing to do. I took her hand as though I was walking the streets with my girlfriend, not even fully aware of what I had done until she called my attention to it.

Once she did, I noticed that neither of us made a move to let go. We simply carried on with our teasing conversation, her leaning in to nudge me as she caught my discomfort at her compliment of Lew. We could have been any couple out for a walk on the streets of any city. The Nixon-devil on my shoulder was screaming at me again, repeating my thought over and over again. We could be a couple. I stole a glance at her as we walked up the steps of the Louvre.

"Stop worrying and look at her. You're in Paris," the little Nixon-devil whispered. "No one knows you. No one can see you touching her. Stop thinking so much and enjoy the moment. It might be the only one you get."

As we made our way through the museum, I found myself watching her more than the artwork. She spoke animatedly about colors and light and painting styles, and I found myself just listening to her. She paused suddenly, gasping in obvious admiration, and I looked up to see that we were now standing in front of the Mona Lisa.

She was awestruck by the painting. I was mesmerized by her passionate reaction. She drew a deep breath and held it for a moment. Then she released a wistful sigh. Her eyes twinkled, and her grip on my hand tightened unconsciously as we stood before one of the most famous pieces in the world.

"Isn't she beautiful?" she asked in a whisper, and my little Nixon-devil and I answered at the same time, although I don't think either of us were talking about the painting.

"Yes. Yes, she is."


	7. Chapter 7

**** ROSE POV ****

We walked through Paris like we owned it that day, hand in hand, taking in the sights as though we weren't paratroopers less than a day from returning to combat. I kept pushing the thought to the back of my mind until I was finally enjoying myself so much that it stayed there.

Every so often, out of the corner of my eye, I would catch Dick watching me. He was always so even-keeled and soft-spoken. I was sure that he thought I was ridiculously immature as I gushed over the artwork and the architecture and a million other little things that free-spirited young women gush about when they are wandering through Paris with a handsome military man on their arm.

We were standing on a bridge overlooking the Seine River, and I was waxing poetic about something when I noticed that he was watching me again, a small smile on his lips. I blushed and cut my soliloquy short.

"I'm sorry. I'm rambling again, I know. You must think I'm so childish… love-struck and head stuck up in the clouds, just gushing about everything all day like I have been."

He leaned back against the railing that I was toeing nervously with my boot, tilting his head back and squinting into the slowly sinking sun before an answer that caught both of us completely off guard slipped unbidden out of his mouth.

"On the contrary, I think you're beautiful. I haven't been able to take my eyes off of you all day." My eyes met his and we looked at each other for a long moment before he finally spoke again. "It'll be dark soon. How about seeing the Eiffel Tower at night?"

We walked back toward the monument in silence, the carefree atmosphere now shifted as a nervous energy floated between us. His hand, which hadn't left mine for much of the day, was now shoved deep into his pocket, as though he were forcibly holding it there. I curled and uncurled my fingers, unsure of what to do with my own hands, before finally putting them in my own pockets.

We reached the Tower and wordlessly climbed the steps, reaching the deserted observation deck in the orange glow of dusk. I walked over to the railing and gazed out over the city, my mind drifting unwillingly toward the unmistakable pull on my heart. My nagging logic reminded me that the situation was hopeless, deflating the bubble of hope that had swelled in my chest earlier in the day. I had to stop torturing myself. I was fighting a war. I couldn't afford to be battling inside as well.

* * *

 **** DICK POV ****

As soon as the words slipped out, the officer in me scolded myself for the lapse in control. She was one of my paratroopers. I was her superior. I could not have feelings for her. I just couldn't. It became a mantra. A cadence that I chanted in my head from the bridge to the observation deck of the Tower.

She's a paratrooper. I don't have feelings for her. I can't reach out and touch her. I must maintain control.

I made my way around the observation deck, moving in the opposite direction from her, meeting her again just as I finished reciting my cadence again. She stood against the rail, the evening sun backlighting her in stunning profile. In short, she took my breath away. Any lie I had been telling myself about not having feelings for her disappeared in that moment. My first thought was to walk up behind her, wrap my arms around her waist and hold her close. On my shoulder, the Nixon-devil laughed because, despite the lie about my feelings, the rest of the speech I'd been reciting to myself had been true.

She's a paratrooper. I am falling for her. I can't reach out and touch her. I must maintain control.

"Hard to believe that we have to go back tomorrow," she said aloud, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"At least it looks as though we won't be seeing action for a little while. Nix was talking about a Mid-March action."

She nodded absently. It seemed that we were both suddenly very tired. Tired from the day. Tired of being away from home. Tired of the war. Tired of fighting whatever this was between us. She released a deep sigh and I nudged her so that she looked up at me, at last offering me a weak smile.

"You ready to go back?"

She turned and looked back out over the now-twinkling city for a moment before finally nodding, "Yeah, we probably should go back and get some rest. Early day headed back to the grind tomorrow."

We made our way back down the steps and out onto the street for the short walk back to the hotel. She was playing nervously with her fingers again, and I knew that she was harboring some embarrassment about everything that had happened. Looking at it from her perspective, once we were back to reality, she would have to answer to me as everyone else did. She would be back among the men of Easy. Among men who knew her and read her well. I really only had one person to fool. Two, if you counted Welsh. She had an entire company. If there were any benefit to me running the battalion now, this was it. It gave us much needed distance.

Her arm brushed mine, a familiar jolt of electricity surging through me, reminding me that we didn't have that distance between us yet. I glanced back at her as we walked. Her eyes were troubled, full of questions. I could almost feel her mind spinning around the idea that she had made a fool out of herself, trying to talk herself into the idea that whatever she had been feeling between us the last few days had been a figment of her imagination. That it wasn't reciprocated. As much as I knew I couldn't act on those feelings, I yearned to reassure her. To let her know that I had been feeling it too, even if there was nothing that could be done about it.

I offered my arm. She looked at it, then up at me, surprised. I smiled, trying to convey with my eyes what I couldn't afford to speak out loud, and I could see the tension leave her face. She bit her lower lip and slipped her arm through mine, her fingers lightly gripping my bicep as we made our way down the street and into the hotel. In the hallway approaching our rooms, she sighed again.

"Back to business as usual tomorrow."

"Yes, I suppose it is."

Stopping outside her door, she looked up and captured my eyes with hers again.

"Thank you for the last couple of days, sir. I know Captain Nixon forced you to come here, but you've been…" she started, moving back into the formality that would come all too soon in the morning.

I slipped her hand carefully from my arm, brushing my lips across her knuckles without breaking eye contact, and saw her take a deep breath. There was so much I wanted to say, and so very little that I could, but I didn't want her to leave Paris wondering if she had created all of those moments in her imagination.

"No, Rose. Thank you. The last couple of days have been just… well… Please just know, even once we get back to the real world, there is nobody on Earth that I would rather spend time with than you." There. I had said all that I could. Her eyes told me that she understood what I couldn't say, and she stood on tiptoe and pressed the softest kiss to my cheek.

"Till tomorrow, Dick. Good night," she said quietly.

As she backed away and moved toward her door, I breathed, "Sweet dreams, Rose."


	8. Chapter 8

**** DICK POV ****

"How was your vacation?" Nixon asked almost as soon as I returned to our quarters. He was fighting a smile, and not very well, I might add, as Welsh looked between us as though he had missed something. "Meet anyone interesting?"

"You're really quite proud of yourself, aren't you?"

His hidden smile became a full-blown Nixon grin as Welsh finally asked what the joke was.

"Well, Harry, I may have manipulated the system so that our hard-working battalion XO had a little company on his leave in Paris."

Welsh looked at him in impressed amazement. "You didn't. Rose was on leave in Paris?"

I turned my back to unpack my bag as they continued their not-quite-conspiratorial conversation, feeling a bit like I was back in grade school.

"She was, conveniently enough, in the same hotel, in a room that should have been quite near to Captain Winters here."

"Adjoining, in fact. There was a shared bathroom between us," I corrected, turning around to see them both grinning like fools and waiting for me to share some juicy tidbit of information. I forced my facial expression to remain passive, even as the image of her bare skin peeking out beneath the bubbles invaded my mind, and finished, "And to answer your first question, Lew, it was pleasant enough."

"That's it! All that work I did, and all you're going to give me is that it was pleasant?" He was incredulous.

"Sorry to disappoint you, Cupid. We both had a pleasant leave, and we came back to reality."

"I don't buy that there is nothing else to it, but okay. Be evasive if you want. You know I'll find out eventually."

Welsh looked like an excited child watching a tennis match. He knew Nix well enough to know that he'd keep after it until he wore me down and got something out of me, and he knew Nix well enough to know that having an eager audience only encouraged him.

"There is nothing to find out, Lew. No secret rendezvous. No torrid love affair. We went. We rested. We came back. That's it," I said, trying to sound decisive. He caught the added effort in my denial immediately and latched onto it with a mischievous smile.

"But you must have talked, at least some?"

Welsh's head turned again.

"Yes, we talked."

"Uh huh. Just pleasantries as you passed in the hallway? Or actual, seated conversations?"

"Conversations. We shared several pleasant meals with nice conversations."

"Pleasant. Nice. Hmm. So, you two spent quite a bit of time together in Paris, then?"

"We were the only two people we knew, Nix. We spent time together because we didn't know anyone else."

I almost choked. The words felt absolutely wrong coming out of my mouth. They felt like a betrayal. I flinched as though in pain, and Nix's face grew serious.

"Dick, you know I'm just joking around. If you need to talk about something, you can trust us both completely."

Harry backed him up immediately. "Absolutely. Come on, Dick. Even you don't believe what you're saying. You look like it physically hurts you to say it."

I sighed and sat down on the edge of the bunk, my leg tapping involuntarily as I tried to come up with a way to explain myself out of my obvious discomfort. They leaned forward from the bunk across from me, silently urging me to confess whatever deep, dark secrets I was trying to hide.

"I promise, you're only going to be disappointed. It's not what you think. We shared meals and explored Paris together. Nothing… like that… happened. I accidentally walked in on her in the bathtub yesterday morning. She was covered in bubbles and I didn't see anything that I shouldn't have. We had breakfast and planned to walk all over Paris. When we got up and started out," I paused, taking a deep breath. Harry and Lew weren't looking at me now as though they were waiting for bits of gossip, but as concerned friends, and it gave me the reassurance to continue. "I just took her hand like it was the most natural thing in the world. We spent the whole day exploring Paris hand-in-hand. Museums. Shops. Everywhere. And I could not stop thinking about how perfectly normal it felt to be walking around like some young couple. And I could not take my eyes off of her."

"And?" Harry prodded, sensing that there was more to the story.

"And I told her that. Standing there on a bridge overlooking the river, without a second thought, I told her how beautiful I thought she was. We tried not to acknowledge it. We ended the evening at the Eiffel Tower, and then walked back to the hotel because we knew we had to be up early this morning. But we both knew that things were different, and we both knew that it didn't matter because nothing can possibly happen. She had herself convinced that I was only there because of you, and that she had read too much into everything, and I hated to see her like that. So, before we said good night, I told her the only thing that I safely could under the circumstances. That there was no one I would rather have spent time with than her. I kissed her hand. She kissed my cheek. We said good night, and woke up this morning back in the real world. That's it. That's all there is. A few affectionate moments brought on by shared history and the atmosphere of Paris, and never, ever to be repeated."

They leaned back and looked at each other. Nix let out an audible breath, as though he'd been holding it in through my story. He seemed as though he'd been expecting something a bit more scandalous, but he didn't say so out loud. They watched my nervous tics for the next few minutes, silently cataloguing my body language as I tapped my leg, ran my fingers through my hair, and generally refused to make eye contact. Finally, Nix spoke up, putting me out of my misery. My eyes snapped up to meet his, and I must have looked like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar. His arms were crossed and his face held a sympathetic smile. His words, I noticed, were not phrased in the form of a question.

"You're in love with that girl."

* * *

 **** ROSE POV ****

"Hey, Doll!" Bill greeted me with a tight hug. "How was Paris? The Eiffel Tower still standing?"

"Nah," I deadpanned. "Wouldn't you know it? Somebody came in and carted it off the night before I got there."

There was comfort in our sarcastic routine, and Bill chuckled, "Damn, I missed you, Doll. Wasn't a soul in that damn hospital who would laugh at my jokes."

"No cute nurses you could flirt with?"

"Oh, now that is a different story entirely. No keepers though. What about you? You didn't get swept off your feet in Paris, did you?"

I forced a half-hearted laugh as Dick's… Captain Winters'… face floated in my consciousness.

"No. Nothing like that. Captain Winters was actually in the next room. I wound up spending most of the time with him." Across the room, I saw Bull's attention shift to me, his knowing eyes twinkling as they met mine, the small smile on his lips disguised only by his cigar. Everyone else may have been oblivious to the implications of such an arrangement, but Bull Randleman knew my secret. "It was nice. We mostly just walked around the city. Saw the museums and things like that. Nothing too exciting."

"Well," announced Don, "I, for one, am glad Nixon sent you. You run yourself into the ground taking care of all of us. You needed that. And, truth be told, Captain Winters did too. Plus, that just means that there was someone there to keep an eye on you, and for you to pass the time with. No good for you to be running off to Paris by yourself. We can't have anything happen to you or, like Bill said, have you getting swept off your feet and falling in love with some guy."

He meant it as a joke, and I managed a covering laugh, but the last comment hit a little bit close to home. A few minutes later, we were walking toward the movie room and Bull Randleman appeared beside me, chewing thoughtfully on his cigar. We slowed down a bit, falling just out of earshot of the group, and he stole a glance at me.

"You don't have to tell me what happened in Paris, Rosalie, but I'm here if you ever want to talk."

"Thank you, Bull. It was nothing catastrophic or anything. Just…"

"But something happened. Even if it was only words."

I bit my lip and nodded, and he smiled and threw a reassuring arm around my shoulder.

"You feel something for him. Maybe even love. And he feels something for you. Ever since that day at the bridge, when I overheard him talking to Nixon and Welsh, I've been watching him. It's there. I can see it."

I nodded again, and he pulled me close into his half-hug.

"Listen darlin'. Here's the thing. Right now, this isn't the best situation. Maybe not the best words for a couple of paratroopers, but you just need to hang in there and focus on getting through the war in one piece. After that, who knows what may happen? But Captain Winters doesn't strike me as the type of man who is prone to changing his feelings too quickly, and you won't be in the Army forever."


	9. Chapter 9

****ROSE POV****

Denver Randleman became my refuge. My confidante. Of course, all of my Easy boys were amazing, but Bull was the only one who knew the truth. Eventually, in the twilight outside of our makeshift Mourmelon movie theater, I told him everything that had happened in Paris and that I of course understood that nothing could happen between us. He let me finish, chewing thoughtfully on his cigar as he leaned against the side of the building. Then he reached out and pulled my into his chest, pressing a kiss into my hair.

"Sweetheart, I can't tell you what is going to happen if we ever get through with this damned war, but I can tell you that I have every reason to believe that he has feelings for you too. Regardless, I can promise you that everything will be okay. You have a whole company full of guys who think you're a beautiful, incredible woman."

I laughed a bit and leaned into his broad chest.

"Oh, somehow I doubt that, Bull. No one has ever said that except for him, and…"

"Me. I said it. You're a beautiful, incredible woman, and any man would be lucky to have you on his arm. Things are going to work out for you, sweetheart. You're going to wind up with a man who loves you more than breathing. You'll see."

Captain Winters seemed to be avoiding me at all costs after we returned and Bull, determined to keep me from dwelling on something that was beyond my control, became my constant companion. He was my pillow, my sense of humor, and my shoulder to cry on. When the lights flipped on and the announcement was made that we were being sent to Belgium, he was there to reassure me again.

"The Ardennes Forest in the dead of winter. Looks like we have some cuddling in our future, sweetheart."

And cuddle we did. The trucks rumbled north, the temperature dropping with every mile, and he pulled me underneath his jacket, doing everything he could to warm my already-shivering body. Finally, we rolled to a stop. Somewhere in front of me, Skip Muck quipped that this was too cold to be Hell, but as I looked at the foreboding stand of trees before me, I wasn't so sure. The ragged men retreating from the forest we were gearing up to head into certainly looked as though they had faced the devil himself.

Some warned us to get out while we still could. Others said nothing, staring blankly as they moved forward on instinct alone, desperate to get away from whatever they had seen. Words like "slaughter" were floating around. Desperate for the supplies that we were not afforded before we loaded up, we began to scrounge what supplies we could from the retreating infantry and from a young lieutenant who brought a jeep full of salvaged supplies from a nearby ammo dump.

I caught Captain Winters' eyes across a box I was unloading just as the young officer mentioned that the Germans were about to cut the road south. We were going to be cut off, and it was clear that the weather would prevent further supply drops for the time being. I could recognize the concern on his face even as he joked that, as paratroopers, we were supposed to be surrounded.

As the jeep pulled away leaving nothing but air between us, he hesitated a moment as though he wanted to say something to me. Then he sighed and turned back to Nixon, leaving me standing alone with handful of ammunition and a sinking feeling in my chest. I ignored the pricking of the tears behind my eyelids as I tucked the ammo into my pockets, not realizing the Bull had seen the brief exchange. His strong arm dropped around my shoulder, pulling me in close and kissing my head like he always did when he was trying to make me feel better.

"I have the worst feeling about this place, Bull."

"I know. Me too. Just stay close, okay? I'm not gonna let anything happen to you, baby girl."

* * *

 ****DICK POV****

Nix's estimation of a mid-March action and a quick jump into Berlin turned out to be about as accurate as the British estimation that Operation Market Garden would find us facing mostly old men and kids. In the frigid December snow, the Germans launched an offensive against our weakest front in the woods of Belgium, wiping out much of the infantry there in what turned out to be one of the deadliest actions of the war. The 101st was unceremoniously yanked from training and rest back into the action, loaded up into trucks and dropped off in the Bois Jacques with no cold weather gear, little food and less ammunition. Easy Company, which still held my heart despite my leading the entire battalion now, was under the charge of an inexperienced, brass-polishing lieutenant named Norman Dike. Needless to say, I was concerned, particularly once we reached our destination and learned that the Germans had cut the road south of our position. We were now surrounded, charged with protecting Bastogne, an area that the Germans were desperate to control because of the road network. The infantry, or what was left of them, was making their way out of the woods just as we were going in, and they looked like broken men. For a moment, I worried that seeing them would break the spirit of my battalion, but they just started salvaging whatever ammunition they could from the retreating soldiers. I was incredibly proud to see the determination in their eyes as they marched into the trees.

My gaze fell on Rose, and on Bull Randleman's arm draped protectively around her shoulders, and my stomach lurched a bit. We hadn't spoken much since we returned from Paris, and what little we did say was strained and business-like. The air was always thick between us. It felt like there were a million things we needed to say but couldn't, so I just didn't say anything. I tried not to notice the growing closeness between her and Randleman. Watching them now though, it was harder to ignore. I couldn't fault her. Denver Randleman was just about as good a man as she could wind up with, and at least I could take solace in the knowledge that she would be well-protected, just as she had been the night they went missing in Holland. He leaned in to kiss her on top of her head and I looked away, only to come face to face with Nix.

"You okay, Dick?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," I lied.

He followed where my gaze had been and looked back at me, shaking his head sympathetically.

"If it helps, as far as I know, they are just friends."

"You sure about that?" I asked without thinking, and then, "I mean, what difference does it make to me?"

He smirked at my poor attempt at a cover.

"You know, Dick, you can't have it both ways. Either let her go or tell her."

"Tell her what? There is nothing to tell, Lew."

"If you say so."

"I say so."


	10. Chapter 10

**BULL POV**

I'd catch him watching us sometimes. Captain Winters, I mean. We'd marched off into the Bois Jacques that night with nothing but his leadership to guide us, and we'd found ourselves surrounded by Germans in a frozen Hell. I kept Rose by my side as we dug into foxholes. One of the benefits of being a man my size is that, in situations like Bastogne, I am equipped with plenty of body heat to share with a slip of a woman like Rose. I also felt better knowing that I could completely shield her from the raining shells. I'm sure that the Captain saw my logic, but I could see in his eyes that it bothered him. I assumed it was common jealousy until he sat down next to me the day we lost Julian. He checked on Babe, who was taking the loss incredibly hard, and then turned to look at me.

"How are you doing, Bull?"

"I'm doing alright, all things considered. How are you holding up, sir?"

"I'll live," he answered with a sardonic smile. Then, his face growing serious and his voice quiet, he added, "I'm glad she has you, Randleman. You're one of the best men I know. With you, at least I know she will always be taken care of."

"Sir," I started, wanting to prevent any jealousy or misunderstanding, but when he met my eyes, I stopped. It wasn't jealousy that I saw, but sadness. Suddenly, I understood. He couldn't be with her, but he still wanted to know that she would be okay. He might indeed be envious of our closeness, but he was giving me his blessing. If he couldn't have her, he wanted to know that she was safe with me. Honored as I was, I felt bad for the man. I thought about reassuring him that they could be together after the war, but Captain Winters was such a reserved man and, since he hadn't directly acknowledged his feelings for her, it would have felt like an invasion. I didn't get a chance to come up with anything else. He stood up beside me, looking down one last time before disappearing back toward his makeshift headquarters.

"Please keep her safe."

**ROSE POV**

I couldn't hear what Winters said when he stood up, but Bull's face as he watched the Captain walk away was a mixture of confusion and sadness. From what I could see, they had been in the midst of a conversation, but he made his hasty retreat as soon as he saw me approaching the group. When Bull finally turned and saw me, he gave an almost imperceptible nod as if to confirm my thought. He motioned me over and pulled me down into his lap so that he could wrap his arms around me. My body began to warm and I buried my face in his neck, inhaling the sweet scent of his cigar.

"He told me to take care of you. He's just worried. That's all," he told me quietly, keeping the conversation private from the oblivious group around us.

"You're not a good liar."

He made a sound that was half-chuckle and half-sigh and muttered, "Yeah, I know." I looked up at him expectantly and he finally continued, "I got the feeling that he's been keeping an eye on you. On us. That he'd trade places with me if he could. But he can't. He can't protect you, and he can't be with you, so he told me to keep you safe."

"You're leaving something out, Bull. He thinks we're together, doesn't he?"

"No. Yes. I don't know. I… he probably assumes something is going on. He just told me that at least he knew that you would be safe if you were with me. I don't know. He looked really sad, but like he was accepting that y'all couldn't be together. It was kinda like he was giving me his blessing, ya know? Like he wanted me to know that he wasn't angry with me for being with you. I started to say something, but that's when he saw you and walked away. I'm sorry sweetheart. I don't know what to tell you."

So he had given up. Bull had mentioned several times that he noticed Winters watching us whenever he passed. Now he was letting go because he saw my relationship with Bull, and assumed that I already had. Or maybe this was his way of making sure that I knew that we could never be together. He had to have known Bull would tell me everything. As painful as it was, I had to admire his grace. His first thought was to reassure Bull that he bore him no ill will for what he perceived happening between us.

I couldn't bring myself to be angry at him for his surrender. After all, Dick Winters was a man who played by the rules and those rules said that we could not be together. Even more so, he was a man ruled by rationality and logic, and being involved with someone he was in command of in the middle of a war zone would certainly erode a person's ability to be rational. Bull said that he wanted to reassure him that we could maybe be together when we got out, but I knew that it wouldn't have mattered. Right now, it simply wasn't within the scope of Dick Winters' reality to think about a life after the war.

I rested my head back in the crook of Bull's neck, willing my tears back until I drifted to sleep.

** WINTERS POV **

Logic told me that the only thing to do was to let go of these feelings I had for Rose. I had to turn them off and move on. There was an entire battalion depending on me to be focused and prepared, and I simply couldn't do that unless I found a way to get her out of my head. I'd noticed her growing closeness with Randleman and, although the thought nearly choked me at first, eventually I reached the decision that the best way to remove her from my reality as anything but just another paratrooper would be to push her into the arms of someone else.

Maybe if she was with him, I wouldn't catch her watching me with those sad eyes anymore. Maybe it would reinforce the idea in my mind that I could not have her, and my subconscious would release her once and for all. Sure, it might be painful at first, like now, as I watched her snuggle into his arms from across the frozen ground. But eventually, somehow, my disciplined mind would revert back to combat mode and she would just be another person under my command.

Randleman would care for her and keep her safe. She obviously trusted him implicitly which was important, considering her painful past. If I were going to be able to get over her, I needed to know that she had a man like him to depend on. I stared across my coffee and out of the makeshift structure, watching as he carried her apparently sleeping form back to their foxhole. For a split second, I saw myself in his place. Then Nixon cleared his throat next to me.

"How is that whole 'ignore your feelings and they'll disappear' thing going for you anyway, Dick?"

I sent a hard stare in his direction, only to be met with his signature smirk.

"I'm doing what I have to do, Lew."

"No, you aren't, Dick. You're pushing her into another man's arms and hoping that will make you forget about her. She's a smart girl. She knows that nothing can happen in the middle of a damn war. She's trying to survive here too. But instead of having an honest conversation and deciding mutually that these feelings will have to wait until the war is over, you have just gone ahead and made the decision for her. You're going to erase your heart and start over, and she is going to be with Bull because that's what you think is best for everybody."

I sighed and started to voice some weak argument, but he held up a hand to stop me and leaned forward, as serious as I had ever seen him.

"Listen to me, Dick. You're going to do whatever you think you have to do, but I really don't think that handing her off to Bull and trying to forget about her is the answer. In fact, I think it might be just about the biggest mistake that you can make, because the truth is that it would be all too easy for her to fall in love with him. Then, when the war is finally over and you look up from being the amazing leader that you are, instead of starting a life with the woman you love, you'll be staring at her and Bull's wedding invitation."


	11. Chapter 11

****ROSE POV****

I wanted more than anything to get my mind off of Captain Richard Winters, and I got my wish alright. If I could have traded it all back for pining away for him, I would have done it in a heartbeat. Instead, I was holding Donald Hoobler's head in my lap as he bled to death in the Belgian snow. I was injecting my sweet Bill Guarnere with morphine and giving a tearful chuckle to Joe Toye wondering, as he lay there with half of a leg, what it would take for him to die. I was handing Skip Muck's rosary to a shell-shocked Don Malarkey, hugging him as he mourned the loss of his best friends.

Dick was still there, a passing longing that wandered through my brain as I lay shivering in a dark foxhole while Bull was on lookout at the OP. When Bull was with me, he kept me busy talking about anything and everything except Captain Winters. We shared our whole lives in that foxhole, becoming as close as any two friends could be. But, for the most part, we were just trying to stay alive. I didn't have time to pine away.

The day before we took Foy, I passed by his tent while returning from a bathroom break and heard Lipton, ever our protector, expressing his serious concern about Lieutenant Dike's abilities to lead us in the upcoming battle. Everyone knew that there was little Winters could do, and I could see from where I stood that his eyes were troubled. He had been worried already, but if Carwood Lipton felt it warranted his protest, things must be much more serious than he thought, and indeed they were. As Lip left to return to the line, I left the cover of my tree and moved to follow. As I passed the small doorway, a familiar voice stopped me in my tracks.

"Rose," he called, and when I turned he motioned me inside.

"Yes sir?" I stopped in front of him, saluting until he stood and returned the gesture and offered me a cup of coffee, which I refused.

Refilling his own cup, he placed it on a nearby ammo box before returning to stand in front of me, so close that I had to look up into his eyes. His voice was soft now and he seemed to be having trouble finding the words he wanted.

"Listen to me, Rose. Tomorrow, when things get bad… I mean, I know it wouldn't look right for me to order you to stay here, but… I guess what I am trying to say is, please just stay safe tomorrow. When it's all over, I… I mean, Easy needs you to be okay."

"Yes sir."

And just like that, weeks of work at blocking those piercing eyes from my mind was undone. He stared down at me, unblinking, for what felt like an eternity, his sharp mind clearly working overtime. In that moment, I no longer felt the cold. I felt only the overwhelming desire for him to unfold from his rigid stance, wrap me up in his arms, and kiss me like I'd been dreaming about since Normandy. When his hand came up to cup my face, thumb caressing my cheek, I sucked in a breath, sure that I must be daydreaming.

* * *

 ****WINTERS POV****

I hadn't really intended to call her over but when I saw her walking by, her name had slipped, unbidden, from my mouth. Now that she was standing in front of me, so close that I could feel the rise and fall of her chest as her breathing quickened, my mind and my heart were battling each other for control of my body.

In a poor attempt to disguise this, I mumbled something about her needing to be safe tomorrow. All the while, heart and head were both screaming in my ears. She stared up at me, her eyes making it clear that she was waiting for me to either dismiss her or kiss her breathless, and I was truly having trouble making the decision. My hand moved to her face and my thumb ran across her cheek, still soft despite the weeks of freezing in the woods. It ran across her weather-chapped lips and her mouth fell open in a soft sigh. My heart had won.

I tilted her chin up and her face showed that she was as scared that I would not kiss her as she was that I would. I could feel myself leaning into her, sliding my hand behind her neck to pull her into me. Her breath was light against my lips and her eyes fluttered closed.

"Ahem," came a less-than-subtle throat-clearing from the doorway. She backed away quickly, her eyes on the ground and her face on fire as she quickly excused herself and scurried around the ever-smirking Lewis Nixon. He watched her go and then turned back to my own reddened cheeks. "Sorry to interrupt. Thought I'd drop in and save you."

"From?"

"Yourself, Dick. Or at least save her from you and your undying sense of duty. I'm not really sure which."

"What are you talking about, Lew? You're the one that told me to…"

"I told you that you needed to talk to her! Figure things out! Make a decision! But that is not what you were doing. You were getting all wrapped up in a moment, and she was right there with you. So, you kiss her and then what?"

I dropped heavily back to my seat and he sat down beside me, handing me a fresh cup of coffee.

"I don't know, Nix."

"Then I'll tell you. You kiss her. Then, because you haven't gotten shit straight in your head, you panic and go back to being your duty-bound, rules-following self. You push her away again and break another piece off of that pretty little heart of hers. And then your guilt drives you, and by association, me, absolutely crazy. She goes into these next few days hurt and distracted. You go in worried, guilty and unfocused. If she lives through it, she spends the rest of the war mending her broken heart in Bull's arms and if she doesn't, then you will never forgive yourself." After finishing his matter-of-fact assessment, he took a deep drag from his cigarette and leaned forward to look me in the eye, continuing, "Look, Dick, I'm all for the two of you winding up together. Really, I am. And I do think that you need to make it known before it's too late that you'd like to be with her after the war is over. But it doesn't seem like you plan on doing that, and whatever was going on in here was certainly not a conversation about the future, or anything that needed to happen right before we take Foy. So, like I said, I was saving you both."

Lewis Nixon was not an intelligence officer for nothing, and he knew me very well. As much as I hated to admit it, he was right. I sighed and sat back, reluctantly meeting his eyes again. He said nothing further, just giving me a small, solemn nod.

"Thanks, Lew."


	12. Chapter 12

****ROSE POV****

"Sir, we are sitting ducks here! We've got to keep moving!" Lipton was screaming in Dike's ear as the man sat frozen against a haystack with more than half of our men out in the open.

Dike's tactical misstep had left us all pinned down by gunfire and he couldn't seem to make a decision as to what we needed to do next. Granted, he'd been wounded on our approach to Foy, but his complete failure in combat leadership was inexcusable. I could hear Winters from the back of the line, telling us to go forward as the Germans rained artillery on us. Then, finally, through the smoke came Lieutenant Ronald Spiers.

Within moments, we were moving forward again, and Spiers was sprinting through enemy fire to link up with another company so that they didn't pull back. Easy Company had a real leader again and, despite the firefight all around us, it was a welcome relief. The battle seemed to come easier after that and, under Spiers' capable leadership, we soon found ourselves marching prisoners out of buildings and singing songs to celebrate victory.

The pop of the sniper's first bullet was completely unexpected. At first, no one knew what had happened. Then the replacement slumped forward, fresh blood trickling from a wound at the side of his head. Another shot rang out and we began to scatter, searching for cover behind buildings, tanks… whatever we could find. I felt a sting under my ear, but before I could react I was unceremoniously thrown over someone's shoulder and carried to the corner of a building where a wounded Frank Perconte was also taking cover. All around us, I could hear the bullets hitting dirt, stone, and flesh. A body that could only have been Bull was wrapped around me, shielding me from the gunfire and the bloody scene unfolding in the streets. There was a final shot, and then a cheer and I knew that the soft-spoken Shifty Powers had saved more lives with his rifle. Bull finally loosened his hold on me.

"Damn, Frank! You decided to carry on the tradition by getting shot in the ass?" I teased.

"Well I…," he turned over to look at me and his eyes went wide. "Holy shit, Rose! Bull, look at her!"

Bull pulled me away from his body so that he could take a better look, and his eyes grew concerned.

"Doc!"

"Bull, what is wrong with you?"

"Just be still. Doc! Get over here! Rose is bleeding!"

It wasn't until that moment that I noticed a burning along my jawline under my left ear. I reached up to touch it, drawing back bloody fingers. That must have been what I felt before Bull picked me up, and considering how long it had been bleeding at that point, I'm sure it was a frightening sight. I could feel the warmth of the blood all the way down my neck and soaking into my uniform, and the cold seeping back into my bones. I began to feel a little lightheaded, and I wasn't sure whether I had really lost that much blood, or if it was just shock setting in. Doc Roe came running over and gave a quick assessment.

"Randleman, can you carry Perconte? I can manage Rose. We need to get them somewhere so that I can clean her up and figure out where all this blood is coming from. She may need plasma," he instructed, draping my arm over his shoulder as Bull lifted Frank onto his back and leading us slowly toward the aid station.

We passed Lipton along the way. He asked Frank about his wound, but when he saw me he told us to get moving and pointed in the direction of a building where the officers were setting up a temporary command post, indicating that Roe would find supplies inside. All I could think was that I must look worse than I thought. That was confirmed when we made our way into the command post and Doc put Frank and I on a table to examine us.

* * *

 ****NIXON POV****

I was standing at a table with Spiers and waiting for Dick and Colonel Sink to return from seeing that Dike was evacuated so that we could go over our plans for the next few days, when Bull came in carrying Frank Perconte.

"What happened, Perco?" I chuckled. "You have your ass up in the air or something?"

Neither he or Bull laughed at my joke as Bull lay him gingerly on a table. Instead, they were both fixated on the door. A moment later, I understood why. I turned my attention toward the door as well, just as Doc Roe came in, supporting a blood-soaked Rosalie James.

"Jesus Christ, what the hell happened to her?"

"I don't know yet, sir. I haven't been able to examine her to find out where the blood is coming from, but I need plasma."

I rushed forward to help him get her onto the table. Spiers yelled for Luz, who was in charge of the supply inventory, to bring the plasma on the double. Dick and Sink chose that moment to return to the command post, nearly getting bowled over by Luz as he rushed in with the bottle.

Startled, Sink demanded, "What the hell is going on in here?"

"Uncle Bob?" Rose was trying to see past Roe, who was getting frustrated at trying to keep her still so that he could insert the needle into her arm. "Will you tell them to stop fussing over me? It's not that… ouch! Gene!"

"Well, if you'd lay the hell down and be still! You've lost too much blood for me not to give you something! Sir, do you think you can help me here? She's been shot and bleeding for a while. I need to get this plasma going so that I can clean her up and see where the blood is coming from."

Colonel Sink moved beside his adopted niece, giving her a stern look and telling her to let the medic do his work. He fingered the collar of her uniform, drawing back blood-stained fingers, and I saw Dick start to move forward to see her. I tried to block his way.

"You don't need to see this, Dick. Roe has everything under control. She's fine."

* * *

 ****WINTERS POV****

I saw the blood on Sink's fingers and the concerned look in Eugene Roe's eyes as he tried to insert the needle for the plasma. Her face was hidden behind his body, and I couldn't see where the blood had come from, but there must have been a lot of it. Nix tried to reassure me, or maybe he was just trying to prevent me from seeing her, but I brushed past him and moved around to the other side of the crowded table.

I was not prepared to see her like that. She was obviously awake and talking, if somewhat weakly, but the left side of her, from just below her ear all the way down to her collar, was covered in blood. The brightness of it stood out against the sickly reddish-brown that had soaked into her uniform. Bull stood beside me, his face solemn.

"I was running for her and she took one from the sniper before I could get there. I'm sorry sir. I just wasn't fast enough to protect her."

I started to speak but she cut me off before I could, sitting up slightly on her elbows and holding a bandage to her jaw to staunch the bleeding. As I watched the exchange, it felt like someone had reached into my chest and was squeezing my heart. I could actually feel the jealousy in my throat.

"Bull Randleman! That is bullshit! It's not as bad as it looks, and once Doc gets this plasma into me and I wipe my face, I'll be as good as new. Don't you dare apologize for not protecting me. You've done plenty of that. You're my guardian angel! Got it?"

He finally allowed himself a grin and brushed a strand of hair back from her face before leaning in to kiss her forehead and whisper, "Maybe so, baby girl, but I will feel much better when you aren't leaving blood trails everywhere. If you're okay with it, I'm gonna go with Luz and see about getting a couple of blankets to make Perco more comfortable."

"Of course I'm okay, sweetheart. Come see me when you get back? And if there are any extra blankets…"

"I'll find one. Or give you mine if I have to. You're colder now than when we were in the damn foxhole," he chuckled as she hit him playfully on the arm.

"That's why I love you, Bull Randleman."

He glanced up at me for the briefest second, almost apologetic, before answering, "I love you too, Rosie baby. I'll be back soon."

"Captain Winters? Sir? Are you okay?"

Her voice startled me. I'd been staring after Randleman when she had apparently settled back onto the table to allow Roe to clean her wound, and now she was watching my face as I clenched my jaw and tried to pretend that the jealousy wasn't eating me alive.

"Yes, of course. I'm fine. Just checking on you and Perconte. Not hurting too bad, I hope?"

Good save, Dick. I'm sure she didn't notice the tension in your voice. I ventured a glance at Lew. He was watching me with crossed arms, raised eyebrows, and a smile at the corner of his lips. Beside him, Colonel Sink seemed to be appraising me curiously as well.

"No sir. I'm sure I'll be a little sore, but nothing too bad. Perco got it much worse than I did. I'm sure this won't amount to much more than a graze once it's all cleaned up."

"Good. Good. That's… good." I was stuttering under the watchful eyes of Nix and the Colonel. I tried to recover by reasserting the original purpose of our gathering in the CP. "Well, if you're okay here, we probably should get back to planning the next action. Colonel?"

He narrowed his eyes, studying my face for a moment, and finally nodded. He stroked Rose's hair and leaned down to kiss the top of her head.

"You're gonna be just fine, darlin'. Just listen to the Doc here." He glanced up at me pointedly before continuing, "And once he's done with you, you stay close to Sergeant Randleman, you hear? I want you as safe as possible, and he will take good care of you. Any more of this and Captain Winters here may order you under his personal supervision, not that I am altogether against that at this point."

"That won't be necessary, Uncle Bob," she laughed, squeezing his fingers. "Bull will probably be twice as protective of me now. He'll keep me close."

Yes, she was probably right… and that is what I was afraid of.


	13. Chapter 13

**I LOVE ALL OF MY FOLLOWERS, FAVORITES, AND REVIEWERS! YOU ARE AMAZING. NOW THAT THE HOLIDAYS ARE WINDING DOWN, EXPECT MORE FREQUENT UPDATES. I HOPE THE HOLIDAYS FOUND YOU ALL HAPPY, HEALTHY, AND SURROUNDED BY LOVE. 2016 HOLDS AMAZING THINGS FOR ALL OF US, AND I WISH YOU ALL THE BEST! KEEP READING AND REVIEWING!**

* * *

 ****WINTERS POV****

"The company has been welcomed in and bedded down inside the church, sir. Lipton made this roster of the men. It seems as though we lost about half in the time we've been here. There is probably still one or two that need to be evacuated, but morale has improved considerably."

Spiers delivered a brief report upon returning to Battalion. I had not seen Rose since Foy, and I tried not to be too obvious as I probed for details.

"The remaining wounded. How are they? Have the medics been able to see to everyone?"

"Yes sir. It appears that Perconte will need to go to the hospital, and perhaps a case of trench-foot or two. James seems to be doing much better, Captain. Roe was able to stop the bleeding and clean her up. It was a graze from the sniper. Fairly deep and dangerously close to her artery, but he has it dressed and says that it will heal on its own. It doesn't seem that she will need to be evacuated."

"Too bad." I had not meant for the thought to leave my head, much less loud enough for anyone to hear, but Spiers looked at me curiously and Harry and Lew seemed to be fighting back laughter. "I mean, I'm sure Perconte would enjoy having a familiar face if he has to go to the hospital."

"Yes sir. I'm sure he would."

I dismissed Spiers and sat back down at a small desk, ignoring the other two men as I began jotting down notes for the After Action Reports that I still needed to write. They stood, arms crossed, biting back smiles until I finally gave in and looked up.

"Can I help you two? Or are you just hanging around to help me write these reports?"

"I can have her sent over so that you can check her out for yourself, Dick."

"And what exactly is wrong with me inquiring about the well-being of the wounded? Just because she happens to be one of them? I'm sure that Doc is taking care of everyone. I just wanted to make sure that he had all the supplies he needed."

"Uh huh," Nix nodded, watching me take a sip from my canteen. "So it wouldn't bother you to know that she was curled up, sound asleep in Bull Randleman's arms when I stopped in on my way here?"

I choked on the water, coughing and sputtering until I finally managed to get out a weak, "No. Why should it?"

He just raised an eyebrow at me, shaking his head as he followed Harry out of the room. I watched them go and sat back down, intent on finishing my reports, but it was useless. My concentration destroyed, I gave in and tried to get comfortable on a small cot, willing my mind away from her as best I could. Still, try as I might, she haunted my dreams because in those dreams, there was nothing to prevent me from sweeping her off of her feet and into my arms. In my dreams, I could touch her and hold her and kiss her. In my dreams, we could be together.

Several restless hours later, I pulled myself away from my dreams and the cot to attend a briefing for which I had been summoned. Hitler, I learned, had launched a counteroffensive in Alsace. Instead of being pulled from the line to rest, we were ordered to Hagueneau, France to hold the line. There was some loose discussion about ways to obtain prisoners of war for interrogation, at which Nixon and I exchanged looks that said we both hoped no hard plan for such materialized. Things were finally looking up. We had come too far to risk more lives on something so pointless. Still, we prepared the battalion and moved out toward the unknown.

I saw her climb into the truck just ahead of my jeep or, rather, I saw Randleman lift her effortlessly into the truck. I tried to avert my gaze quickly but she caught my eyes as she settled onto the bench seat nearest the tailgate, tucked safely under the tree-trunk-sized arm of her constant companion. I froze for the briefest second, unsure of whether to turn away or acknowledge her. In that moment, I tortured myself silently, still acutely aware of that Nixon-devil on my shoulder. He was laughing at me.

Turning away when I had so clearly seen her might hurt her feelings. But what if it didn't hurt her feelings? What if it just confused things? If she'd decided to be will Bull now, did I want to create confusion? What if she didn't care to be acknowledged by me any longer? Did my concern for her matter anymore, beyond just that of a commanding officer? And then there was the problem of Nix, seated just beside me in the jeep. If I made any gesture, he would certainly notice. I couldn't single her out without listening to him needle me for the duration of the ride back to France. In that moment, the decision was made for me. She smiled. At me. And despite my best efforts to minimize my reaction, I could feel the burn of the blood rushing to my cheeks as I instinctively returned the gesture.

Without thinking, I stepped away from the jeep I had been climbing into and approached the rear of the truck where she was sitting. Perconte lay sprawled in the bed, hitching a ride toward the hospital nearest to where we were headed and, to my relief, providing me with an excuse to feed Nixon about why I had briefly delayed taking my place in the jeep.

"How are you holding up, Perconte?"

"Doing okay, sir. Doc's keeping me pretty comfortable."

"Good. Take care of yourself, and don't go rushing back once we get you to the hospital. We need you, but we need you healthy."

"Yes sir," he answered, offering his trademark grin and settling back comfortably on the blankets the rest of the troopers had piled up to pad his ride.

I turned toward Rose and found her already watching my face, her own etched with something between relief and uncertainty.

"Rose…" I wanted to ask how she was, but I wasn't sure if I could do it without revealing that it was more than just a passing inquiry.

"Sir."

"Are you… um… I mean, was Doc able to get you taken care of?"

"Yes sir."

Bull Randleman, the source of so much of my anxiety over the last month or so, seemed to sense the tension and uncertainty in the air. Bless him, he took one look at my face and saw all of the questions I couldn't ask in my eyes.

Carefully pulling the bandage back away from her neck, he gave me a small nod as he said, "Here, Rose. Doc wanted me to put a fresh bandage over this before we started moving. We might get bounced around a bit, and even though it didn't hit the artery, he didn't want those couple of stitches opening back up. Looked a lot worse than it was, but you can't be too careful, right sir?"

As he asked, he turned her toward him so that I could get a good view of the wound. I immediately felt the knot in my stomach loosen. He was right. It had been close to the artery, but now that she was no longer covered in blood, it was clear that she would be alright.

"Absolutely! You can never be too careful. I can't afford to have you bleeding nearly to death again," I replied a little too quickly, and the large man gave me a smirk that let me know he had indeed seen right through my ruse. In an instant, I knew that he knew everything. Of course she would have told him. It shook me a bit, and I quickly added, "Take care of her, Randleman," and backed away from the truck.

I felt three sets of eyes following me all the way to the jeep. Two held knowing and mild amusement, and the third held confusion and, to my own discomfort, a tinge of hurt. My last statement had come across as a bit curt, even dismissive. It was then that I realized that lingering in this sort of purgatory, pushing her away because it was what my head told me must be done and not wanting her to move on from those moments we had shared in Paris because it made my heart twist uncomfortably to imagine her with someone else, was making life as difficult for her as it was for me.

As I climbed silently into the jeep beside my smirking friend, I resolved that I would find time to have a frank discussion with her once we had settled into Hagueneau. I had to let her go. Out loud. Make a clean break. It was for her own good, and mine, and the good of all those under my charge. She was professional. She would understand. She had always understood. We just didn't make the clean break we should have in Paris. I certainly hadn't helped matters when I let my heart take over in the Bois Jacques. She could move on with her life, wherever that might lead her. If that path took her to Bull Randleman, then so be it. As the convoy rumbled forward, I steeled myself with a new resolve. My head was back in control and I was determined to keep it that way, even as the memory of her chapped-but-still-soft lips burned against my own. My fingers touched them reflexively. No. I was a logical, reasonable, well-trained officer. I could banish these feelings to the back of my mind. Beside me, Nix chuckled.

"Keep telling yourself that, Dick."


	14. Chapter 14

****WINTERS POV****

"This is an unnecessary risk."

I knew from Lew's face that he agreed with me, but we both knew that there was little that we could do but follow orders. We had settled into Hagueneau. Lipton had pneumonia. Spiers had taken over Easy Company. The Germans were just across the river that I was now staring across, and my men were finally getting the opportunity to sleep inside for an extended period of time.

"I know, Dick. It didn't come from me."

Apparently, Sink and the division brass thought that this would be a good time to send a patrol across the river to snatch some German prisoners for interrogation. I wasn't too keen on the idea, but orders were orders. We went to the CP to go over the plan with Spiers and discuss who would be on the patrol. They could make me pass down the order, but I didn't have to be thrilled about it.

* * *

 ****ROSE POV****

We were settling in to the OP when Webster came in with some fresh-faced lieutenant we had never seen before. Joe, who had really put Web in his place when he had hopped onto the back of our truck with a big recruiting poster grin on his face, was now looking at him warily. From across the room, we overheard the new lieutenant, Jones, telling Malarkey about a patrol. Joe wanted details. Not one to wait, he threw an arm around Webster's shoulder and began pressing him.

Webster, dying to be a part of the group again, quickly spilled the limited details he had. Fifteen men on a prisoner snatch across the river. The new lieutenant desperately wanted to be among the fifteen, and we veterans were definitely in favor of that. He could certainly use the experience, but it didn't sound like he would be getting it on this patrol. By the time Malarkey called for our attention, we already knew who had been selected so far. The only good news was that rations had come in and, along with our late-arriving winter shoe packs, we had showers. We made our way quickly down the stairs as shells whistled over the buildings, adding yet another name to our growing list of casualties.

Sergeant Bill Keane was dead, the potatoes he'd been carrying strewn all around him. Webster and Jones stood in stunned silence over his body. The rest of us were undeterred. It wasn't that we didn't care about the latest death. We did. But we had seen so much of it that we knew that lingering out in the open over a body served no purpose but to bring more bodies. Showers and fresh ODs remained the priority for most of us.

"Rose," Bull called from near the canvas tents that were slowly filling with exhausted, dirty paratroopers. He was holding a blanket and standing at a water stream close to the wall of the tent. On his face was the reassuring smile that I had come to depend on. "Come here sweetheart. I'll block off a spot for you so you can take a shower."

Gratefully, I stepped behind the blanket and stripped down without a second thought. The water was tepid, but against the cold air it felt amazing and I closed my eyes as the stream began to wash the grime of the last month away.

Beside me, Bull spoke again, offering me a bar of soap. His fingers brushed mine as he placed it in my hand, and I looked up to see his cheeks flaming with a fire that burned all the way up into his eyes. His voice was low and husky, and I realized that he probably hadn't expected me to be completely naked because many of the others were bathing with underwear still on.

"I'm sorry. Wasn't trying to sneak a peek at ya. I just didn't expect you to be…"

"Bull, don't worry about it. There is nobody I trust more than you. Besides," I finished, stepping back underneath the water as I lathered the soap in my hands, "I'm a filthy, beaten down mess. I'm certainly not much to look at, naked or not."

"Shit, Rosalie. Don't start that shit with me. You're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."

* * *

 ****BULL POV****

She looked up at me in surprise, and I knew that I should be embarrassed at having been caught staring. I just couldn't bring myself to be. The way the water ran across her skin, cleansing the mud and blood away as it continued its journey down her body like a collection of dirty rivers… It stirred me in places that I had been trying to ignore for a long, long time. Places that I had been trying to pretend did not exist.

I thought she would be angry at me, or maybe embarrassed, but when I didn't back down, something unexpected happened. Her shock faded as she held my gaze. A small, shy smile began to spread across her face. Then she tried to bite it back, nibbling on her lower lip. I tried to hide what that small gesture did to me, but the rumble in my chest and the white-knuckle grip that I now had on the blanket probably gave me away. I cleared my throat in an attempt to cover it.

"So, um, why don't you finish up? Doc is bringing me a set of ODs for you. Then I can shower and we can go get some chow."

She nodded and closed her eyes again, scrubbing away our month in the woods of Belgium. I tried not to watch her as she ran the soap across her body, grateful when Doc jogged over to hand me a fresh uniform for her so that I had no choice but to avert my gaze.

God, she was beautiful. I knew all about her confusing relationship with Captain Winters, but I also knew that the foundation we'd been building our friendship on was incredibly strong. Of course, they didn't know the whole story, but the guys pointed it out constantly. I tried not to listen to the voices in my brain saying that we could be something more. But now, seeing her blush and tentative smile in the shower, I had a moment of uncertainty. If I tried, maybe I could help her forget her feelings for Dick Winters. But did I want to take that risk?

I was pulled from my thoughts when she stepped from her makeshift shower stall in her clean ODs. She looked up at me with a twinkle in her eye.

"Need me to hold the blanket for you?"

In that moment, all I wanted to do was kiss her until she never thought about another man again. I managed to stutter a weak "no," and she smiled and pointed to the set of steps where she would wait for me to finish so that we could go eat. As she walked away and I began to undress, I found myself wishing that the shower was colder.

* * *

 ****ROSE POV****

My stomach felt funny, fluttering, butterfly feeling that I wasn't used to having around Bull, but there was something about the way that he had been looking at me. I recognized it at the feeling that I had whenever there was a tense moment between Di… Captain Winters… and me, which is maybe why it surprised me so much.

George Luz had asked me once if I could ever see myself with Bull. Of course, he didn't know anything about the complicated relationship I had with Captain Winters. As far as I knew, except for Bull, no one knew. The question still struck me a little funny at the time though, and I answered him truthfully.

"I don't know, George. I don't think I've ever really thought about it that much. I mean, he's my best friend. I love him. I guess, given where we are, I never considered anything else."

"Hmm," he had responded at the time, in a way that said he probably knew a little more than he was saying. We were shivering in a foxhole in the Bois Jacques, Bull having left me under his protection while he did his shift at the OP, and I was too cold to pester him. I decided to wait him out, but he wouldn't give me anything further except to say, "Some of us were just curious. He protects you like you are his world."

He wasn't wrong. In my heart I knew that the man who had just looked like he wanted to devour me in the shower would also, without a second thought, jump in front of a moving tank to save me. I also knew that I would do the same. Thinking about it now, there was no question that Bull Randleman had a significant piece of my heart. I loved him.

But what kind of love? I'd been trying so hard to ignore that side of myself because of Winters that I hadn't even acknowledged that anything but friendship with Bull was possible. I leaned back against the steps and let my eyes wander back toward the shower.

He stood with his back to me, completely bare. His skin, as all of ours, was pale from having been bundled up against the frigid Belgian winter, but the broad, muscular shoulders belonged to a man who had once known the unrelenting heat and sun of a southern summer spent working outdoors. He had no aversion to the hard labor of digging foxholes or feeling the cold metal of a rifle in his hand. These were as familiar to him as the dirt and grime he was now washing away. Dirt and grime that had been compounded by his tucking me underneath him as shells and splintered trees rained down on us. By his sleeping with his back against the muddy walls of the foxhole so that I could nestle against him for comfort and warmth. It made me stop and think.

I had always considered Denver Randleman to be a good-looking man. I had seen him in everything from civilian clothes to PT gear. He had even been clean and pressed, decked out to the nines in his dress uniform, but he had never looked as handsome to me as he did in that moment. I considered him carefully as he donned a fresh set of ODs, not realizing that he had noticed my stare. He stood from tying his boots and made his way determinedly toward me, shirt still hanging open, stopping so close that I had to look up to meet his eyes. When I did, he winked and gave me a little half smile.

"Did you enjoy the show ma'am?"

I must have blushed because his grin widened, but I managed a cheeky response of, "As much as you did a few minutes ago sir."

For a moment, we stood locked in silent acknowledgement of the line of intimacy that had now been crossed. Surprisingly, it wasn't really an uncomfortable feeling. It was more a feeling of… could it be anticipation?

Neither of us noticed the two officers watching our public, but personal, display with interest. Finally, the red-haired Captain sighed and dropped his head.

"Let's go. We need to let Martin know he's leading the patrol and meet with him and Spiers before the briefing."

Throwing a final glance in our direction, he started in the direction of the command post.

"See there, Dick," Lewis Nixon finally said, patting his friend on the shoulder, "Now there is a man who knows what he wants. You may just get your wish after all."


	15. Chapter 15

****WINTERS POV****

"He died of his wounds sir," John Martin informed me.

Apparently, Eugene Jackson had walked into the blast of his own grenade during last night's patrol and died in the basement of a building before Doc could even get a good look at his wounds. While the patrol had succeeded in capturing two prisoners, it was clear that the men did not feel that the sacrifice of another one of their own was a worthwhile trade. I had to agree with them, and the thought that Sink wanted another patrol tonight was eating away at me.

To make matters worse, I still hadn't had the opportunity to talk with Rose, and my dreams about her had become a nightly occurrence and were so vivid that it was hard to tell them from reality. When I had woken this morning, I could still feel the pressure of her lips against mine. I was leaning with my hands pressed against the shower wall, still thinking about the way her body felt, when the water turned cold. Even then, I couldn't move right away. I needed the shock. Clearly, my day was not getting any better.

"Well executed. It wasn't your fault," I had tried to reassure him. "Talk to your men."

Now, I was staring out across the river as Colonel Sink told me that he would be "expecting more of the same tonight." For the sake of my troopers, I certainly hoped for something very different. As he pulled away, Spiers spoke up next to me.

"Should I brief the men… and woman?"

"No, I'll do it. Wait, what? Woman?"

Spiers seemed slightly confused as he looked over at Lew, who was watching my face carefully for some reason.

"Yessir. Nixon said that your instruction was to put Rosalie James in Jackson's place on the patrol tonight."

I was going to kill him. He was forcing my hand and he knew it. He knew that the idea of her on that patrol would eat me alive. I'd have to talk to her now. I let out my breath through my nose and glared at him as I passed. I could see him suppressing a chuckle as he turned to follow me to the briefing. That chuckle turned into a full-fledged laugh when I stood in that room and did something that I never thought I would ever do.

I began the briefing talking about what Sink had said about the success of the previous patrol, and answered the legitimate disbelief from the remaining participants that the plan was not being changed at all. I looked down at the map on the table, pointing out the area from which they would start and that we had recovered all of the boats from the previous evening. I could hear the resigned sighs all around me, including my own. Then I glanced up and met her eyes. Eyes that, last night in my dreams, had burned into mine from beneath me on my pillow, just as they were burning into mine from across the table now.

I couldn't move, but I heard myself saying, "I want you all to get a good night's sleep tonight, which is why, in the morning, you will report to me that you made it across the river but were unable to secure any live prisoners. Everyone understand? Good. Look sharp for tomorrow. We're moving off the line."

Nix finally tugged my arm to get me moving out the door and followed me out, congratulating me on my brilliant strategy and telling me that he would write the report for me.

"I can't believe that you put me in that position."

"What position?"

"You knew that putting her on that patrol would force me to…"

"Force you to talk to her? Yes. And you still need to. Dick, this is getting ridiculous. You're distracted every time you see… Hello! See? She walks out of a building and you're not listening to anything I'm saying. Jesus, Dick. Make up your mind what you want to do and talk to that woman. Today! Now, come on. We have a promotion to award."

I heard him. I heard everything he said, and my first instinct was to turn and follow him but my feet carried me toward the doorway where she stood. She looked up at me, startled, and I leaned in close to her ear.

"Meet me at the CP in an hour. We need to talk."

* * *

 ****ROSE POV****

"Then, he just walked off with Nixon and Spiers. What the…?"

"Rose," Bull held me by the shoulders, stopping me mid-pace and giving me his most reassuring smile. "Whatever he wants to talk to you about, it's going to be fine."

"How do you know that?"

"Because I just do, okay? Look, what's the best thing he could want to say? That he loves you and he wants to be with you, right?" He held my chin until I met his eyes and continued, "And the worst would be that he didn't. Right?"

"What if he doesn't?"

He didn't hesitate.

"Then he doesn't know what he's missing. Rose, if he isn't the one, it just means that he isn't the one. It doesn't mean that anything is wrong with you. Just make sure that you say everything you need to say too. Don't let him do all the talking. Now, go on." He pulled me close and wrapped me in a hug, pressing a kiss to the top of my head and another to my cheek before whispering in my ear, "I'll be right here waiting with another one of these when you get back."


	16. Chapter 16

**HANG IN THERE WITH ME, AMAZING PEOPLE... IT'S GETTING INTERESTING!**

* * *

 ****WINTERS POV****

What was I thinking, telling her to come here? I had no idea what I wanted to say yet, and I'd left myself little time to come up with something. I had let my heart take over again, something that Nix happily pointed out was a result of my not handling this whole mess a lot sooner. I'd seen her come outside and jump into Bull Randleman's hug after I called off the patrol, and I marched up to her with all the confidence in the world. My confidence fled as soon as I walked away, and now I was up here, pacing my room like a nervous teenager. Why didn't I choose some place more neutral? Maybe I could catch her outside and direct her to my office instead.

The knock on the door signaled that I was too late. I willed my head to take control and steeled myself for what I knew would be a painful conversation for both of us. My orderly, wearing a concerned expression, escorted her into my room and stood awkwardly, waiting for my dismissal. My eyes never left hers as I gave it and he left the room quietly as we stood, staring at each other for what seemed like hours. She broke the silence first.

"Sir? Was there something that you needed to talk to me about?"

I cleared my throat and set my shoulders back, trying to appear much more formal than I actually felt in that moment. My insides always felt like jelly when she held my stare like she was doing now.

"Yes. Yes, of course. Um, would you like to sit down?"

"No, thank you. I'll stand."

"Okay. Well, I just wanted to clear the air between us."

I realized that I was wringing my hands and shoved them into my pockets.

"Clear the air, sir?"

"Yes. I think that I've let things get out of control. That I have led you on in some way. I need to apologize for that."

"Apologize? There is nothing…"

I interrupted her. I couldn't afford to let her speak. I wasn't sure that I would be able to continue this charade of detachment if I did.

"Yes, there is. I allowed myself to become personally involved with you, far more than I ever should have. I led you to believe that something would… that something could… happen between us. That I had feelings for you which I wanted to explore further," I raced on, trying desperately to ignore the defeat in her eyes in spite of the unruffled façade that she was putting on. The words tasted like acid in my mouth. "I just want to be clear so that neither of us in distracted moving forward. Nothing can happen. Nothing will happen. We are fellow paratroopers, and you are under my command. Going forward, all of our interactions must be strictly professional. I will not allow any of this to jeopardize my command or our battalion going forward. The truth is that those moments between us were just that. Moments. Moments of physical attraction which are in the past now, never to be repeated. So, do we have an understanding?"

I was lying through my teeth, but unflinchingly convinced that I was doing the right thing. I did my best to make sure that my tone left no room for discussion, and her eyes said that I had succeeded. She swallowed hard and nodded, adopting the most passive look that she could muster.

"I understand."

"Good. One other thing. This thing that seems to be building between you and Sergeant Randleman?"

"There isn't…"

I held up my hand to stop her.

"Off the record, I support it. He'll take care of you. He's a good man. The two of you are good together. Just… be discreet."

There was a tear at the corner of her eye but, miraculously, it did not fall. Even more miraculous was that I did not reach up to wipe it away. I nodded and offered her what I hoped was a reassuring smile, dismissing her from the room and shutting the door behind her.

I leaned against the wood, laying my head back and releasing a slow breath, praying that, with it, I could finally let go of her. From my place at the door, I could turn my head and see out the window to the street below. She stepped out into my view and crossed the street into Denver Randleman's waiting arms.

* * *

 ****ROSE POV****

I took a moment to gather myself after he shut the door so that I could at least maintain my composure until I got past the other officers who were downstairs in the CP. Altogether, considering that I felt as though my insides had been run through with a bayonet, I pulled off my escape rather well. Nobody looked up except for Nix, who raised an eyebrow at me as I made my hurried exit.

My mind raced. He'd dismissed me so emphatically. So purposefully. Just moments, he had said. Moments in the past. I had known that nothing could happen while we were over here. There had been no need to explain that. This was more. He was pushing me away permanently, as though those moments had meant nothing. Maybe they didn't mean anything. They certainly hadn't meant what I had wanted them to mean.

As I stepped into the glaring sunlight and made my way across the street I felt unbalanced, and the centrifuge in my brain threatened to topple me completely. I wondered if I would be sick. Someone bumped into me and I stumbled, bracing myself for a fall that never came.

Instead, a pair of strong arms caught me and lifted me off the ground. I buried my face against his neck as he carried me off to the side, away from curious ears.

"Sweetheart, it's okay. Just breathe. What the hell happened in there?"

The story, and my long-held tears, gushed out of me in a whispered rush. I had been prepared for Dick Winters to let me down with a gentle, sincere statement about what our current positions meant for any sort of fraternization. I'd even expected it; perhaps something along the lines of what had happened in Paris. I understood the position he was in. I could even understand his pushing me toward Bull, because the same thing had happened during the Bulge. What had robbed me of my breath was the coolness of his delivery and his suggestion that what had been between us was purely a physical attraction.

Bull's grip around me tightened protectively but he let me cry, stroking my hair and back until I had exhausted my tears. I took a deep, shuddering breath and he pressed a kiss into my temple.

"I know you're upset, but he's not that kind of man. I'm sure he didn't mean it quite the way it sounded. He's probably going to be a career military man, and he's focused on making it through this war right now. He's just doing what he thinks he has to do."

Bull's calm, measured tone and carefully chosen words helped make sense of the swirling thoughts in my brain. The ache in my chest lessened a bit when I considered the notion that Winters probably thought that he was doing the kindest possible thing by putting a clear line between us. I leaned back and looked up at Bull with a watery smile.

"You know you're my hero, right?"

"Nah, I'm nothing special. I just can't stand to see you upset."

"Well, you always know what to say. How to calm me down. How to make me feel better. Even if it's just a hug. That makes you pretty damned amazing in my book."

His fingers tipped my chin up so that he could wipe my tears away with his thumb. His serious eyes burned into mine.

"Baby girl, I told you I'd be here waiting, didn't I?"

"You always are."

"Damned right. And I always will be."


	17. Chapter 17

**** ROSE POV ****

We were standing in Hell. I had thought that the Bois Jacques was Hell, but I had been wrong. This God-forsaken cage filled with corpses and near-corpses that sat just outside of Landsberg, which we had been praising as a comparative paradise only a day earlier, was without question the closest thing to Hell that I had ever, or will ever, see.

My stomach churned as I walked through the camp, looking into the faces of those men. They hugged us and kissed our cheeks. They wept in our arms. They were so broken, but they looked at us with such hope. It was an amazing, heart-wrenching feeling. Those of us from Easy would catch each other's gazes through the smoke still drifting upward from huts that had been burned, and it seemed that a silent understanding and connectedness was drifting through the entire camp. We were as united as we had ever been, for with all that we had seen in this war, nothing compared to this and we knew that there would be no words to describe it once we went home.

When at last it came time for us to return to our barracks, General Taylor had declared martial law and we felt some solace in the knowledge that the people who had ignored the existence of this place for so long would be getting a firsthand experience in the horror that man was capable of. We felt dirty. Disgusted. Exhausted. We were conflicted. We felt relieved to be leaving, and guilty for feeling relieved. We were moving on to supervise the cleanup in Thalem, but I think a part of all of us would stay in the confines of those barbed wire fences.

I sat in the back of the rumbling truck as we left the camp, surrounded by men who were as shocked into silence as I was. Deep down I knew that we were all feeling the same thing, but Bull had somehow wound up in a different truck, and in that moment I felt very small and very alone. All I really wanted was to scrub the smell of the camp from my skin and curl up in a bunk, wrapped in the arms of the one person who always made me feel safe.

At last the trucks jerked to a stop, emotionally wrung-out paratroopers stumbling from the backs of them and, without hesitation, toward the showers. Uniforms were dumped into piles as we stood, expressionless, under the streams of water. As they always did, the guys had blocked off a small area of the showers when we arrived so that I could have some small measure of privacy, and I stood behind that flap of canvas and finally let the tears come. I had a feeling that I wasn't the only one. Tears were much easier to hide when your face was already wet from the shower.

I sobbed and scrubbed until I heard the rustling of canvas behind me.

* * *

 **** BULL POV ****

Things had gone far beyond sideways today. One minute, we'd been out on a patrol and teasing O'Keefe about how jumpy he was. The next, I'd been kneeling beside a barbed wire fence with a churning stomach, wet eyes, and a sense of dread unlike anything I had felt in the war. With the flurry of activity as we secured the camp and attempted to care for the prisoners, I hadn't seen Rose more than in passing since the rest of the Company had arrived, and after looking in the faces of those men and hearing about the existence of a women's camp, all I really wanted was to wrap her in my arms.

I was standing under the shower in my boxers, lathering the soap in my hands, when I saw her walk into the small shower area that had been set aside for her. I didn't think twice. The men around me were too dazed to notice as I slipped behind the canvas curtain, but as the flap closed, she looked over her shoulder at me. Instead of surprise, I saw relief. She'd been crying, but when she saw me, she began to sob even harder and I moved immediately to wrap my arms around her. She leaned back into my chest and I pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

"You okay, Rosie baby?"

She took a shuddering breath.

"Yeah. Yeah, I am now. Are you?"

"I'm okay now. I was just worried about you. I know today was hard. I felt bad that I couldn't be beside you more."

"I feel so disgusting, Bull. I can't get that smell off of me."

"I know, sweetheart. Here, let me help."

I lathered the soap in my hands and massaged it into her shoulders and back, feeling the tension leave her muscles as she relaxed into me. Now was not the time to notice how her body, firm from training and combat, still felt soft beneath my touch. My fingers moved up and she leaned back, exposing her slender neck so that I couldn't resist the urge to pull her back into me, hugging her from behind and letting my lips brush along the skin there.

I wanted desperately for her to be okay. The last couple of weeks had been trying for her at best. Nobody else in the company knew about her and Winters. Although she did a fantastic job of hiding it from everyone else, I knew that she'd been heartbroken by how things had played out between them. She had been operating under the hope that they were just putting aside mutual feelings until the war was over, but he had essentially eliminated that hope with their conversation in Hagueneau. She told me that it felt like she'd been hallucinating in the moments they'd shared, seeing feelings that weren't really there. She felt dismissed.

Ultimately, though, she was handling things very well. She had freely confided in me about anything and everything since we'd spent that long night together in a barn in Holland. I'd watched her become more confident since then and, in the weeks since their conversation, I'd heard her distress over the newly-minted Major begin to fade. The previous night, before the hell of the camp, we had stayed up late as we often did, whispering to each other like children up past our bedtime. She had told me that, for the first time in a while, she was content. Content with the situation we were in. Content with the way things had happened between her and Winters.

"But most of all," she had said, snuggling deeper into my arms, "I'm content with this right here."

I worried that all of that might be undone by the experience of the day. I'd resolved never to push her, and I didn't want to start now, but it was hard to fight the instinct to kiss her and tell her that everything would be okay. My lips pressed against her neck and I wrapped her tightly in my arms as I tried to convey comfort to her. She seemed to sense my concern and turned in my arms, taking the soap from me and rubbing the suds across my chest.

"I'm gonna be okay. We are gonna be okay," she tried to reassure me.

Her hands ran across my chest as mine had across her back, trying to cleanse away the sweat and grime of the camp. I swallowed hard, that electricity, which was becoming all too familiar, crackling between us. I was sure that she could feel my heart pounding as I slid my palms over her hands and held them to my lips, but she intertwined her fingers with mine and looked up at me with the absolute trust of two people who had been through the worst the world could throw at them and survived it together. In that moment, I truly felt like we might be the only two people left on the planet.

Without any thought to the consequences, I placed her arms around my neck and slipped my hands to her hips, pulling her bare body against my half-clothed form. I could feel a heart pounding again, but this time I wasn't sure whether it was hers or mine. Was I really about to risk everything? The words came out before I could stop them.

"I'm terrified that I'm about to ruin our friendship, but Rosalie, I've never in my life wanted to kiss a woman as badly as I want to kiss you right now."

She shook her head at me.

"Denver, there is nothing on this planet that could ruin our friendship."

My voice sounded husky, almost unrecognizable to my own ears as I asked, "You sure about that?"

Her hands were in my hair as she lifted herself onto her tiptoes, and she managed only one phrase before I crashed my lips to hers.

"Only one way to find out."


	18. Chapter 18

**FIRST, LET ME THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR AMAZING REVIEWS! I KNOW THAT EVERYONE IS HANGING ON WINTERS AND ROSE, BUT I WAS THRILLED TO SEE A REVIEW ABOUT HER RELATIONSHIP WITH BULL AS WELL. I'M WORKING ON A NUMBER OF ONE-SHOTS AND MULTI-CHAPTERS THAT HAVEN'T BEEN POSTED YET, IN ADDITION TO THOSE HERE THAT I AM STILL UPDATING, AND THE CHARACTER OF DENVER "BULL" RANDLEMAN HAS A SPECIAL PLACE IN MY HEART.**

 **KEEP READING. KEEP REVIEWING. I PROMISE THAT I'LL KEEP WRITING, AND I WILL DO MY BEST TO MAKE IT WORTH YOUR TIME!**

* * *

 **** WINTERS POV ****

I threw back the canvas to protest but, as always, I awoke and sat straight up in my bed before I could say a word. It took a moment for me to remember where I was. I looked around the room, finally spotting Nix, still sleeping off his V-E Day celebration, and realizing that we were at Berchestgaden. It had been weeks since Landsberg. Weeks since I'd seen Randleman slip into the showers with Rose. I had no idea what happened between them, although deep down, I didn't think anything had. Denver Randleman was the epitome of a southern gentleman. Still, my mind was eager to fill in the blanks with torrid details and, rather than fading away, the dream seemed to become more vivid as the weeks went by.

By the time we moved into Austria, I was almost afraid to go to sleep because I didn't want to watch it anymore. I'd been so committed to getting over her that I'd pushed her into his arms. Now that it looked like she was comfortable there, everything in me was screaming that I had made a huge mistake… just like Nixon said I would. I really hated it when he was right.

"So, what are you gonna do? I mean, the war here is over. We've got Japan, but who knows if we'll ever…" Nix was saying, just skirting the suggestion that I should go after her.

What he didn't know was that I'd already made up my mind what to do. My solution, while extreme, somehow seemed like the only logical solution to any number of problems. The problem of waiting around in Austria for orders. The problem of my ever-present need to feel useful. The problem of wanting a woman that I couldn't have and couldn't get over.

"I applied for a transfer."

His eyes widened, the cigarette nearly dropping from his lips.

"You did what?"

"I applied for a transfer. Once it's granted, I'll leave for the Pacific right away."

"You're going to go to the Pacific to get away from Rose?"

When he said it out loud, it did sound a bit absurd, but it was the only way. Still, I repeated the lines I'd been rehearsing in my head since I'd made my request.

"No, of course not. If I'm going, I want to get it over with. I'm no use sitting here in Austria, and if I can do some good over there…"

Nix was having none of it, and cut me off quickly.

"Cut the bullshit, Dick. You can say whatever you want, but this is me you're talking to. You're never going to convince me that she doesn't play some role in your big rush to get away. Otherwise, you'd have a hard time considering leaving Easy."

"I'm doing what I have to do, Nix."

"I know I'm wasting my breath, but you're about to make a big mistake."

* * *

 **** ROSE POV ****

The charged atmosphere that had seemed to surround Bull and me since Hagueneau finally ebbed back into the comfort and closeness that we had always enjoyed. We both knew that there was the potential for something much more than friendship between us and there were moments, like standing together in the showers at Landsberg, when it felt like everything that we'd been holding back might break free. In the end, though, I think we both understood that the only way we could be anything more than friends would be to finish the war and go home. What was between us was real and strong. The truth was that, away from the constant reminders of the war and Dick Winters, I knew that I could be happy with Bull.

For his part, Bull was the one who always encouraged me to dig into my feelings about Winters. He didn't think that anything should be left unresolved, and it frustrated him when he felt like Winters was playing tug-of-war with my feelings.

"If there is even a chance that something could work between the two of you, you should take it," he told me as we celebrated V-E Day. "Maybe now that the war in Europe is over, he will be able to think about things a little more clearly."

Nothing had changed though, and Winters was now turning his focus to preparing everyone for the inevitable redeployment to the Pacific. We had lost Shifty, at first on purpose because we rigged the lottery to get him discharged, and then because he was in an accident before he could ever get on the boat home. We also lost Chuck Grant because some bastard replacement from I-Company decided to get sloshed and go on a shooting spree. That night was the first night that I ever believed that all of the stories about Captain Ronald Spiers might be true.

I'd resigned myself to enduring my silent frustration a little longer when, one morning as we were gathering for PT, Nixon walked by and motioned me over.

"I shouldn't be telling you this, but I've been watching you two dancing around each other for three years now, and you are about to get blindsided, so I think you should know. The reason Dick isn't out here is because he is in a meeting right now with the brass."

"Why? Did something happen?" My stomach dropped, afraid that he had somehow gotten in trouble over me. Nixon shook his head.

"It's not what you're thinking. At least not that he's in trouble." He noted my sigh of relief and gave me a sad look that said I was not going to like what he was about to tell me. "He applied for a transfer. There's a unit leaving for the Pacific right away, and he wants to be with them when they do."

"He what? How could he…? Why would he…?"

He put his hands on my shoulders and looked me squarely in the eyes so that I could see his sincerity.

"Look, he says he wants to be useful and get it over with, but I'm not going to lie to you, Rose. I'm with him almost constantly. I can tell you with almost 100 percent certainty that this is about you. About getting away from you. You're a kink thrown into his straight-laced sense of duty, and he has no idea how to handle it. He tried to let you go and push you away, and all he's done is make things worse for himself. You're a distraction. And I'm sorry, but I just didn't want you to be caught off-guard when you heard."

"Thank you, sir," I answered, clenching my jaw in anger.

I don't know what reaction Captain Nixon had been expecting, but anger wasn't it. When he saw that I was mad, a small smirk crossed his face.

"You know, he should be out of his meeting by the time you're done with your march. He'll be down at the dock for a swim, on the off chance that anyone had anything they felt like they needed to discuss and get straight with him." I met his eyes and he winked at me, shrugging his shoulders. "Hey, I've been telling him for a long time that he needed to talk to you. He won't listen to me, so maybe it's time I start approaching this from the other side."

I watched him walk away before turning back to the group. I had plenty of time to think as we marched, and the more I thought, the angrier I got. By the time we had finished, I was so eager to lay into him that I didn't even bother to shower or change. Bull was almost laughing at this newfound anger as he urged me on. Resolute, I stormed off toward the docks.

"Major Winters!" I called as I reached the river, seeing the shock of red hair as I approached the docks. "Major Winters, I need to speak to you."

He turned toward my voice, and it nearly stole my words as he stood there dressed in nothing but his PT shorts. Then, as quickly as it had come, it passed. Because when he saw who was approaching, he turned back around, pretending not to see me, and dove into the water. Now I was furious. I had pulled my boots off and was preparing to jump in after him when he finally noticed and spoke to me.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"What the hell does it look like? I told you that I needed to speak to you. I know you heard me, and I'm tired of you pretending that I don't exist, so I'm going to get your attention even if it means that I have to jump in there after you."

"Rose, nobody is ignoring you. Just go back to the barracks," he patronized, grabbing a towel as he made his way back to the bank to usher me away.

"No."

"Yes. I'm ordering you…"

"You're ordering me?" I demanded, incredulous. "Are you seriously ordering me away so that you don't have to talk to me? Is that how you plan on handling me until your transfer?"

His eyes widened.

"Who told you about that?"

I ignored the question. I was too far gone now, and he was glancing around as though he were worried that someone might see us arguing on the riverbank.

"I'm a distraction. You are transferring away from Easy Company, in a big rush to get to the Pacific so that you can be half a world away from me, and you're going to avoid talking to me until then by giving me orders!"

"Dammit, Nix!" he growled, grabbing me by the wrist and near-dragging me the short distance back to his room. When the door slammed shut, he turned back to me, still not releasing his hold on my arm. "Now, you listen to me. I had plenty of reasons to request that transfer. None of those reasons involved you. We settled this back at Hagueneau!"

"Bullshit!"

"What?"

He looked at me as if he'd never heard the word before. I spoke slowly, drawing out the syllables as if I were talking to a child.

"I said bullshit! We didn't settle a damn thing at Hagueneau!"

"What are you talking about? We agreed…"

"We didn't agree on anything! You fed me some line about duty and distraction and moments of physical attraction, whatever the hell that was supposed to mean. Then you dismissed me just like you do that damned orderly of yours. I'm sick of you acting like I am in agreement with everything you say! You've never even asked me what I thought! You just think you know what's best for everybody, and that's fine for the war, but this isn't about the war!" I was on a roll now, and the look of absolute shock on his face pushed me onward. "I've done everything you've ever asked of me. I haven't pressed the issue or done anything to cause any problems for you, short of breathing and being in your line of sight. I didn't ask for these feelings, nor have I tried to push you into them, and now you're willing to leave the whole regiment behind to get away from me! Why is that? If you were so sure that we agreed in Hagueneau to everything being just some brief physical thing, then why?"

My chest was near-heaving with choked-back sobs as I finished my rant. He stared at me for a moment, trying to decide what to say to appease me.

"Rose, I just…"

I lifted my eyes to meet his and he fell silent.

* * *

 **** WINTERS POV ****

The air was crackling with electricity, and as much as I tried to formulate an argument or an excuse to avoid this conversation, I just couldn't bring myself to lie to her. When she met my eyes again, I realized that I was still holding her by the wrist and, before I could stop myself, I tugged her forward into my arms. My free hand immediately tangled in her hair, pulling her lips to mine.

"This is why," I breathed against her lips, and her body melted into mine, slender fingers lacing behind my neck. "Because I just can't stop wanting you."

My hands slipped down to cup her backside, only just covered by her PT shorts, pulling her hips against mine so that we both gasped at the sensation. Any hope I had of regaining control was lost in that moment. The whole world got fuzzy. I lifted her. She wrapped her legs around my waist, and one of my hands held her thigh as the other arm held her torso firmly to mine. The kisses were deep and slow, and I could feel her pulse against my tongue as I dragged open-mouthed kisses down her neck and collarbone.

The white PT shirt she wore came off with one tug and her brassiere quickly followed. I fell across the bed with her squirming beneath me, whimpering as I explored every inch of exposed skin between her lips and her belly button. At last, she could stand no more and took hold of my dog tags, pulling me back up to her lips.

Fingers digging into my shoulder blades, she whispered my name against my mouth and it sent heat surging through me. It felt surreal. Hands that looked like mine were running along her stomach and across her breasts, my thumbs and then my teeth teasing pert, pink flesh until it was stiff, brushing against my own bare chest as my hips found a steady rhythm against hers.

My hand held her thigh where it was still wrapped around me, slipping slowly downward as we breathed each other in. I couldn't think. I could barely breathe. I was absolutely aching for her by the time my hands gripped the fabric of her shorts.

"Rose… baby…" I didn't have to finish. She lifted her hips and pulled me back into a heated kiss as I removed her last bits of clothing, finally raking my eyes across the naked body I had wanted to explore for so long. I pushed myself up on my arms so that I could take a good look, and the sight of her stretched out and vulnerable beneath me stole what remained of my breath. Lowering myself in a slow pushup, I drew her back into a kiss and whispered the words that I'd only ever said in my dreams. "I need you so bad right now."

I could feel the moisture of her arousal against my own through the thin material of my shorts, and her voice against my ear finally stole what was left of my self-control.

"I'm all yours."

She had barely finished and we were both tugging at my shorts. I was kicking them off. We were kissing again. My body was joining with hers, the sensation and her whimper making it clear that she'd never done this before. Our hips met and I drew back slowly, and then pushed into her again, trying desperately to restrain myself as her discomfort subsided. At last I drove forward and her body arched against mine. This cry was one of pleasure, and it was all the encouragement that I needed.

She clutched my neck and shoulders, her body rising to meet mine as we swallowed each other's moans with fervent kisses. There were whispered, breathless encouragements. Her muscles quivered around me, and her damp skin slipped easily against mine. Her face was buried in my neck when I felt a hot tear escape her eye. Stilling my movements, I pulled back to look down into her face.

"Sweetheart, what…?"

Another tear slipped out before I could finish, and her confession came out in a whisper.

"You're gonna transfer and I'm never gonna see you again."

The words and the brokenness in her voice in the midst of such a long-awaited and intimate moment shattered my heart into pieces, and I whispered against her lips as I pressed another soft kiss there.

"He denied my request, sweetheart. I'm not leaving."

Her eyes met mine, studying me to see if I was telling the truth, and a silent conversation passed between us. She drew me into another slow kiss, sighing as I renewed the movement of my hips against hers.

The rest of the world grew fuzzy again. It was just the cool of my sheets and the mattress beneath us, and the feeling of her body, soft but firm, moving against mine. Breathing was shallow and ragged now. Her soft moans and cries were like fuel driving my body into hers. The months of attraction and suppressed feelings burned between us, pouring out as mumbled confessions that I couldn't control.

"Oh, God help me, I shouldn't be doing this, but I've wanted you for so long…"

"I love you, Dick," came out in a whisper against my ear, and my body surged forward in response to the words.

I felt her body tense around me, her cry of pleasure and release buried against my shoulder. The sensation was too much. I could hold out no longer, releasing all of the passion I'd been hiding away with a final, shuddering groan.

Spent at last, I lay beside her and pulled her into me, pressing a kiss against her hair. Exhausted, she cuddled sleepily into my chest. My heart was finally content and satisfied, but as the high of making love to her began to wear off, my brain began to scream warnings and doubts. What had I just allowed to happen?

"Rose," I whispered. "Whatever happens, sweetheart, I need you to know that I love you… that this… us… was real."

She didn't respond and I glanced down, realizing that she had fallen asleep in my arms and that, come tomorrow, she was going to hate me.


	19. Chapter 19

**** WINTERS POV ****

The door closed behind me as I exited my meeting with Colonel Sink. I leaned against the wall for a moment, picturing the smiling face of the woman I'd woken up to this morning. The woman that I loved. There was no use denying it now, especially to myself. I wondered aloud if she'd ever speak to me again. Nixon chose that moment to walk by.

"Why the face, Dick? I'd have figured you to be in a good mood today, unless the whiskey has finally gone to my head and that wasn't the beautiful Rosalie James I saw sneaking out of your room at the crack of dawn this morning." He waited a moment for an answer, but when I didn't meet his eyes, he seemed to realize where we were standing. He looked at Sink's door, then back at me. His head dropped. "What in the hell did you just do?"

* * *

 **** ROSE POV ****

"I don't know what it means, Bull. He was acting really… distant. He just kind of rushed me out the door this morning."

His strong jaw clenched and he wrapped me in a hug. With all that had been hanging in the air between us, I almost hadn't wanted to tell him what had happened, but he was the only person that I could trust, and he had been the one who had encouraged me to leave nothing unsaid or unexplored. True to his nature, he was my rock.

As he held me, he whispered against the top of my head, "I'm sure that everything will be okay, but I'm telling you, Rosie baby, if he breaks your heart again it's really going to piss me off."

I barely had time to laugh before an orderly showed up to tell me that my presence was requested in Colonel Sink's office. Bull, of course, insisted on walking me over to the building, promising to wait outside until I was done so that we could finish our conversation. It never occurred to me to be concerned about meeting with my "Uncle Bob," but had I caught a better glimpse of Captain Nixon's face as I passed him on the way in, it might have. Instead, I knocked on the door and entered.

"Come in, sweetheart!" His mood was jovial, giving no indication of a problem. "How are you holding up?"

"I'm good, Uncle Bob. Is everything okay? I was told that you needed to see me."

"Of course! No, it's nothing bad. As a matter of fact, let me first start by telling you how unbelievably proud I am of you. Of the woman that you've become. I wasn't sure about this when you first said that you wanted to join the paratroopers, but you have exceeded my wildest expectations. Which is why I am so proud that I get to be the one to tell you."

"Tell me what?"

"Well, I've just had a meeting with Major Winters. He said that the two of you had been holding a secret between the two of you for a long time now, and this morning, he realized that it needed to come out."

"Oh?" I tried not to sound nervous. Had Dick really come in here and told my Uncle everything? Certainly not, given his good mood. If not, then what was he…? Realization washed over me. Surely he hadn't… I was almost afraid to ask. "What's that, sir?"

"About what happened on D-Day. About you saving his life. Why didn't you ever tell me?"

"I wasn't really looking for recognition, Uncle Bob. I just did what I thought anyone would have done," I choked out.

"Well, that may be true, darlin', but I'm proud to tell you that I've submitted you for a Bronze Star. Which means that you'll have the points to go home. Dick gave me your discharge request already. I'll approve it as soon as the paperwork on your medal comes through, and we will rotate you home in the next few months!"

I barely heard what he said next as I began to understand why Dick had been acting so strangely this morning. After everything that had happened between us, his sense of duty had won. I pasted a smile on my face as my sweet Uncle Bob gushed over his pride for me and my bravery at saving a man who had become such an outstanding and indispensable officer. When, at last, he was finished, he hugged and congratulated me before finally dismissing me. I stumbled outside, where I saw Nixon standing with Bull. They must have already been talking, because they took one look at my face and rushed forward to hold me. Nixon spoke first.

"Rose, I'm so, so sorry. I had no idea he'd go to Sink. What all did he tell him? Are you in some kind of trouble?"

I was having trouble forming the words. Bull pulled my chin up to meet his eyes.

"Rosie baby, what did your uncle say? What happened in there?"

"He told Uncle Bob about the German on D-Day, and I'm getting a Bronze Star!" I sobbed.

Nix looked a little relieved, breathing, "Oh, thank God. A Bronze Star? That's great! Congratulations! You deserve it after…"

Bull cut him off. "What else?" Nix glanced between us, realizing that there had to be a reason I'd be so upset, and Bull prodded. "What else did he say?"

"He said that this meant he could approve my discharge papers and rotate me home within a few months. Apparently Winters submitted them after he said he was putting in the paperwork for the medal. Only I made him promise not to tell the brass about what happened in Normandy! And I damn sure didn't request a fucking discharge! He's doing this to get rid of me! He sold me out!"

"Shit," I heard Nix mutter, and Bull's angry eyes snapped to his.

"So this is how your friend operates? He drags her heart around a while and then, when he can't run away, he sleeps with her and then forces her out against her will? He may be a hell of a paratrooper, but as far as this whole thing is concerned, he's a fucking coward. And you can tell him this for me. He just destroyed the best thing that ever happened to him, because I'll be damned if I ever let him hurt her again."

* * *

 **** NIXON POV ****

I walked into his room and slammed the door behind me. He was sitting on his bed, staring at the pillow as though she were still there looking up at him. He didn't even move when I came in.

"Let me guess. You did what you thought you had to do? Are you kidding me, Dick? You're having her discharged so that you don't have to face her! You slept with her, and now you're shipping her out! I gotta say, I didn't think you had it in you."

I expected an argument, but all I got was, "She hates me, doesn't she?"

"I don't know, Dick. I saw her coming out of Sink's office. She was destroyed. She feels betrayed. And I can tell you this much. You won't have to worry about facing her until she gets shipped home because I don't think Bull is going to let you anywhere near her if he can help it."

At this, he finally looked at me.

"He knows? She told him about last night?"

"Of course he knows! She tells him everything! And when you were apparently acting all weird this morning, he was the only person she felt like she could confide in… and then you went and confirmed everything that she was worried about! I can't believe you'd sleep with her and then sell her out like that!"

"I didn't mean for that to happen!" Now he was fighting back. "You're the one who sent her to argue with me about the transfer!"

"Oh, so now it's my fault!"

"Things just got… out of hand. And then, I guess I panicked. I mean… I never wanted to hurt her, but I can't let her get sent to the Pacific, Lew. I just can't."

"Because she's going to get in your way? Distract you?"

He cut me off quickly.

"Because I love her! Because it's better for her to go home. Better for me not to have to worry about her every single second of every single day. I can't give her the relationship she wants, and I won't be able to stand worrying about her anymore over there. Because I would rather her hate me, marry Bull, and be safe than risk her life following me over there."

I shook my head at my best friend's sad face.

"Looks like you're going to get your wish."

* * *

 **** ROSE POV ****

A few weeks passed, and by the time we were standing in formation before my Uncle Bob, I was resigned to the ugly reality of what had happened between me and Major Winters. He'd been doing his best to avoid me at all costs, and when he couldn't, Bull stood by as a physical barrier between us, silently daring his superior to talk to me. I noticed that Nixon, if he spotted me while walking with Winters, always managed to steer him in a different direction and out of my line of sight. Standing in that line beside my protector, I couldn't help but appreciate the care and concern of these men, as well as their discretion at a time when I needed it most. Of course, part of that was about to be revealed to the Company.

"Gentlemen, most of you know by now that, while I am fond of all of you, I have a particular connection to a member of Easy Company. I've watched her bloom since childhood, protected her as fiercely as I was able, and been truly terrified as she entered this war. But I stand before you today as a proud surrogate father, because a few short weeks ago, I was made aware of exactly what type of woman I had helped to raise.

On D-Day, after landing in the wrong drop-zone, Rosalie James met up with a lieutenant, and the two began making their way toward the rendezvous point. Along the way, they were forced to seek shelter from a German soldier, splitting up across a path to hide in the hedgerows. This German soldier drew a weapon in preparation of shooting the Lieutenant who, at that moment, was not aware that he had been spotted. Rosalie James, seeing the danger and knowing that any noise might expose their position and draw fire, jumped the German soldier from behind and took him down using only her trench knife, thereby saving the life of the man who, later that day, would be named your commander, and is now Major Richard Winters.

It is my honor and privilege to present Rosalie James with a Bronze Star, with the V for valor, for her courageous actions on June 6, 1944. Rosalie, please step forward."

Finally, the pomp and circumstance was over and we were dismissed, my shiny new medal pinned on my chest for the world to see. I was offered a great deal of congratulations, and a number of impressed comrades wanted to know why I'd never told the story before. I deflected as best I could, until I felt the firm reassurance of Bull's body behind me. At last, my body relaxed and I leaned into him, his massive arms wrapping comfortably around my waist. I didn't have to look to see him grinning around his cigar as he spoke to the group around us.

"She's pretty damned amazing, isn't she?"

"Wait," Talbert demanded. "You knew?"

Luz looked at Talbert like he had three heads, smacking him on the arm and rolling his eyes.

"Of course he knew! Look at them! Don't you pay attention to anything around here?" Then to Bull, "Let me guess. She told you about it while y'all were missing in Holland, right?"

I felt Bull nod and George threw up his hands at Tab in a gesture that clearly suggested he had missed the most obvious thing in the world. The two of them continued to bicker for a moment, and Bull took that moment to lean down close to me. His voice was a fierce, low whisper that sent goosebumps across my skin as he spoke, his lips brushing the shell of my ear.

"Rosie baby, you listen to me. I don't give a damn why he put you in for that medal. Wear it with pride. You deserve it. You earned it. I don't want to hear you tell one more person otherwise. Regardless of the circumstances, that medal is exactly where it belongs. All you need to know is that Easy loves you. I love you. And I am so unbelievably damned proud of you."

As he stood back up, squeezing me in a small gesture of reassurance, I felt my own posture straighten with confidence. Tab studied us, his eyes narrowing as though he were trying to figure something out.

At last, he asked, "So… what is this with you two anyway? I mean, are you two just friends, or…?"

He let the question trail off and Bull unconsciously pulled me closer. Without meaning to, we answered at the same time.

"Or."


	20. Chapter 20

**** WINTERS POV ****

"This came for you today," Lewis Nixon said, casually flipping a piece of mail onto my desk. I reached for the white envelope, recognizing the handwriting almost immediately. Before I could open it, he added apologetically, "I got one too. It's a wedding invitation. The day before the reunion."

Randleman. The name on the return address said Randleman. I looked up at Nix and he shrugged, as if to say that he had told me two years ago that this was going to happen. He had, but I really didn't want to hear it right now. Sensing that I was lost in thought, he left my office quietly, and I sat back in my chair and thought back across two years. It seemed forever ago, and that it had just happened all at once.

She had deserved the Bronze Star. I knew that she didn't want it, but she deserved something. Until that day, I had abided by her wishes not to say anything. When she fell asleep in my arms after we made love, I spent the whole night just watching her. I knew that we were going to the Pacific, and as an officer, I had seen films of the action over there. I just couldn't let her go over there. I knew that with the Bronze Star, she'd have the points to go home. I also knew that she'd sooner stay with Easy than take advantage of that. Colonel Sink would certainly take any opportunity to keep her safe, so I knew that it wouldn't be hard to convince him. There, tracing her soft, naked skin with my fingers, I decided that I would rather have her live to hate me than die beside me.

I went into Sink's office the next morning with a report suggesting her commendation and a request for her discharge. As I expected, he was thrilled. Lewis Nixon, however, let me have it as soon as he figured out what I had done. Then, he let me have it again after talking to her and Bull outside of Sink's office.

She felt that I had sold her out to get rid of her. Bull, who apparently knew of our relations the night before, probably would have come looking for me if I had been another enlisted man instead of an officer. As it was, he stood guard over her from that moment on. I couldn't have approached her if I had wanted to. His clenched jaw and fiery glare were more than enough to let me know that his patience with me was running thin, even if I was an officer. He loved her. I could see it when he looked at her. Though it was obvious that she held similar feelings for him, he'd been reluctant to pursue anything because of her complicated relationship with me, or so Nix told me. Now, it looked as though I had led her on to my own physical ends and left her to cry again. I steered clear of him, mostly because if he had decided to take a swing at me, I probably wouldn't have had the heart to see him court-martialed.

She had not been rotated home yet when word came down that the Japanese had surrendered. We were all going home. I looked around at the company that had come to mean so much to me, and I felt peace in knowing that those who had made it through to this day would be able to go home. At last, my eyes fell on her. Or, better put, on them. He had lifted her off of her feet, his arms wrapped around her slender waist in the same way that mine had once been, and they were gazing happily into each other's eyes. He kissed her tenderly before putting her back on her feet, confidently taking her hand and following the rest of the guys toward the inevitable celebration that would follow.

Beside me, my usually sardonic confidante patted me on the shoulder and said, simply and seriously, "That could have been you."

That was two years ago. I hadn't spoken to her since the morning after she shared my bed. We came home. I went to New Jersey and began working for Nixon Nitration Works. Despite Lew's best efforts, the women there held little interest for me. I thought about her much more often than I was willing to admit. I knew she had gone to Arkansas with Bull after the war. I knew that Colonel Sink was thrilled at the prospect of her being with Bull Randleman, for much the same reasons that I had once recited to myself.

Still, I retained this feeling of unfinished business between us. Mike Ranney's invitation to the upcoming reunion had fanned those flames. It took me awhile to make the decision to go, but in the end, I knew that I had to. I needed to see her. I needed her to know that what I did, however misguided, was done out of love. That I still loved her. I needed to see if my gut feeling that something was still there between us was right.

The white envelope that lay in front of me answered all of my questions at once. Just like that, it was all over. It no longer mattered. I pushed the envelope away as Nix walked back in with a cup of coffee for each of us.

"You not gonna open it?"

"Why? I can't go anyway. I have entirely too much to do here, and I'm working on the farm," I rationalized.

He sat the coffee down roughly in front of me, sloshing some of the hot liquid out. Surprised, I looked up and he placed his hands on the desk and leaned over in front of me.

"You are going. You put yourself in this position, Dick. You have no one to blame but yourself. So, you will go for the reunion and to see your men. You will go to do the right thing and be supportive, even if it is hard. You will go to bury the hatchet and settle all of this, once and for all. If I have to drag you, you're going to go."

The stern look on his face let me know that he did fully intend upon dragging me. I sighed and nodded. A month later, we were walking into a reception hall, having arrived late and missed the ceremony. It seemed fitting, given the circumstances. The next time I saw her, she would be someone else's wife. Nix studied my face outside the door, waiting to see if I were going to chicken out and preparing to pull me inside, if necessary. I took a deep breath, pasted a smile on my face, and stepped over the threshold.

We were quickly greeted by old friends. Ranney thanked us for making the trip. Bill Guarnere and Joe Toye, complete with prosthetic legs that they were quick to tell me they hated, looked happy and healthy, each with a beautiful young woman on their arm. All of the men looked to be doing well, graciously greeting their old CO with the same deference as always, although we were now all on level ground.

Nix and I were talking to a few people in one corner of the room when his eyes widened at something behind me. I knew the deep Southern drawl without having to turn.

"Hello, sir."

I turned toward my long-time rival. His face was serious but not stern, and we stared at each other for a few second as those around us held their breaths. I held out my hand and, finally, he accepted the gesture and smiled broadly, and the whole room seemed to relax.

"Good to see you, Bull. Sorry we were late. Trains here aren't quite as dependable as they were over there, you know."

"No problem, sir. Glad you could make it. Means a lot that you came."

"Wouldn't have missed it," I answered, and we exchanged a meaningful look that let him know I didn't have to be happy to be supportive.

He started to speak again, but before he could, a female voice came behind him and he turned to take the hand of the beautiful young woman.

"Denver, sweetheart, would you like to go ahead and cut the wedding cake? Some of the boys are driving me crazy."

He smiled affectionately as he tugged her forward into my view.

"Ah, my beautiful bride. Come here, baby. Look who made it."


	21. Chapter 21

**HI! LAST CHAPTER, SO I HOPE YOU'VE ENJOYED THIS ONE. DON'T FRET THOUGH! I HAVE MORE STORIES COMING (BOTH ONE-SHOTS AND MULTI-CHAPTERS), SO PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE STAY TUNED! IF THERE IS SOMEONE YOU'D LIKE ME TO WRITE ABOUT, FEEL FREE TO MESSAGE ME!**

* * *

 **** ROSE POV ****

I saw him walk in from across the room. He hadn't been at the wedding. I would have noticed. I knew he'd gotten his invitation because Nixon had mentioned it when he called to say that he would be coming with a plus one. Apparently, instead of the bubbly skirt that I'd been expecting to see on his arm, Dick Winters was his plus one. I heard him telling Bull as I approached that they'd been late because of the trains.

My best girlfriend, Vera, mentioned something about cutting the wedding cake, but I barely heard what she said. She and I stepped up between Bull and Lewis Nixon, but still, I was unable to look away from him. I had no idea what I was going to say.

"Ah, my beautiful bride. Come here, baby. Look who made it." I noticed the grin on Nixon's face as Bull continued, "Vera, I'd like you to meet Major Richard Winters. Sir, this is Vera Randleman, my new wife."

Dick's eyes were wide and confused as he shook her hand, looking between those standing in our small group for an explanation. I saw that Bull wore the same mischievous grin as Nixon as he introduced them. Nixon leaned into my ear.

"I already told Bull. I almost had to drag him here. He never even opened the invitation. Since he saw your handwriting on the envelope, he's been thinking it was you. I figured it was good for him, so I didn't bother to correct him."

Satisfied at the shock value of the moment, Nixon disappeared and Bull winked at me, leading Vera back toward the cake and leaving the two of us alone in the corner. We were silent at first, at last chuckling at the awkwardness. I met his eyes and he smiled down at me softly, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.

"Hi, Rose," he said at last.

"Hi."

For a moment, he appeared indecisive about something, and then he pulled me into a tight hug. I sighed and breathed him in, wrapping my arms around his waist and relaxing into his arms for the first time in two years. Surprisingly, it felt completely natural. In an instant, all the awkwardness fell away.

"I thought Lew was forcing me to come here for some kind of closure. When I saw your handwriting on that invitation, I just figured…"

"Vera is my best girlfriend. Bull is my best guy friend. I was the maid of honor, so I helped with the wedding. She knew I had all of the Easy addresses. Bull and I have not been a couple since just after we got home from the war. We love each other dearly, but in the end, we are better as friends. Neither of us wanted a relationship where we always had to wonder if I was comparing him to someone else," I explained. "Nix has known forever. I can't believe he didn't tell you, especially after I told him about Denver."

"And miss out on a chance to torture me? Are you kidding?" I laughed, but he was serious. This had all been a part of Nix's scheme to show him what he'd been missing. He'd have probably been angry if he wasn't so happy. He pressed a kiss into my hair. "So, I'm almost afraid to ask, but I have to. Is there… someone?"

"Yeah, I'm afraid there is someone," I answered quietly, backing up and looking up at him. He sighed, seeming to steel himself for the real blow. "The same handsome, duty-driven, red-haired officer that I've been trying to get over for the last three years."

My eyes were damp. His heart was pounding against my hand, and I could tell that he was wondering if he had heard me correctly. I stared up at him, waiting for him to put the pieces together. His breathing grew shallow, like he was fighting back a wave of emotion that he'd been holding in since that fateful night in Zell Am See.

"What are you saying?"

"Really, Dick?" I asked incredulously. "It's you. It's only ever really been you. I've driven myself crazy trying to figure out what this is, so we need to put it to rest. I need to know what you want from me, once and for all. But, before you say anything, there is something I need…"

He didn't let me finish before he pulled me into him again, crashing his lips to mine. My hands were behind his neck. His arms were around my waist, lifting me fully off the ground as he explored my mouth, brushing his tongue across mine. At last, he put me back on my feet and dropped to a knee in front of me.

"What do I want from you? I don't ever want you to doubt my love for you again. Now that I know what it's like to wake up next to you, I don't ever want to wake up without you. I'm begging you to forgive me for what I put you through while I tried to figure that out. Marry me, Rose. Spend the rest of your life letting me make up for the last three years. That's what I want."

I blinked back tears.

"Dick, please. I really need to tell you something before you do that."

He looked worried, frozen in a proposal that he thought was going terribly wrong. Nixon stepped forward, holding the tiny hand of a red-haired toddler who was walking toward Dick on unsteady legs. He stumbled and, on instinct, Dick reached to catch him. For a moment, they studied each other, one out of curiosity and the other out of complete surprise. Nix, wearing his trademark grin, finally offered him an explanation.

"Dick, you remember all those phone calls that you were too busy to take while deep in your 'avoiding the obvious' stage of depression? Well, I'd like you to meet Bull's godson and honorary ring-bearer, Denver Richard Winters."

Dick's eyes snapped up to Nix, and then to me. The tears I'd been fighting back broke free and rolled down my cheeks. Bull and I had tried to let him know, but Nixon said that, at the time, he had been buried in regret and denial over what had happened. He wouldn't talk to or about me or Bull. It had taken all of Nix's effort to get him here today. Now, I had no idea what he was going to say.

"You have a…? We have a…?" He took a deep breath, closing his eyes and regaining his composure. When he opened them again, he looked up at me with determination and said firmly, "We should be a family. I don't want to live without you, or my son, anymore. Marry me, Rose. Today. Right now."

Unable to speak, I nodded and he stood, taking our son in one arm and me in the other, pressing "I love yous" into my lips. The room around us, which I suddenly noticed had been silent as everyone watched the drama unfold, now erupted into cheers.

Shouts of, "Finally!" and "It's about damn time!" came from all around us. Nixon walked up to hug me and shake Dick's hand, playfully ducking as though he were going to get punched.

Above it all, I heard my best friend's booming voice as he laughed, "Now we can cut the cake!"

When the raucous crowd had finally turned its attention back to the party, he made his way over to where my new fiancé and I were standing. Offering a handshake, when Dick accepted, he pulled him in close and whispered with an authority that only Bull Randleman could muster.

"Now, sir, please do not break her heart again. Because now, there is nothing to stop me from knocking you out."

"Don't worry, Bull. This time, I'm not letting her go."

* * *

 **** DICK POV ****

The next day, as we officially opened the Easy Company reunion, I stood before the men I had once commanded and took a vow to love and cherish Rosalie Winters all the days of my life. The room erupted in applause again as we sealed it with a kiss, but there was no cheer so sweet to my ears and the squealing and clapping from a tiny red-haired boy in the front row. And later that day, as we enjoyed the reunion and our friends, there was no feeling so fulfilling as my new wife's hand in mine, and our son sleeping soundly against my shoulder.

This was the peace that I had promised myself on D-Day.


End file.
